Living with Alzheimer's: Simplified games keep Joan busy

Part 11 of 12.

On the Minnesota farm where I grew up, my family would often play table games, generally cards. During blizzards, normal activities paused.

With no TV to captivate us, we found great entertainment in card games like whist or hearts, board games like checkers and table games like Monopoly. Playing games with family and friends created great memories.

When my wife, Joan, first began her Alzheimer’s decline, we played a card game called Spite and Malice. At that stage she could follow the rules. She did well and would win maddeningly often!

As we got involved with other problems, Spite and Malice fell into disuse. A few months ago we went to a friend’s house for supper with their family and mutual friends. Following the meal, the table was cleared and games started. A little skill and lots of luck made for a fun evening.

Joan did not grasp any nuances of the games we played, but often showed interest in some simple strategy she understood. The other players humored her and helped her participate.

That experience led me to wonder if there was a table game we could play together.

Actually, there are probably many such games, but we found one called Qwirkle. With over 100 tiles to spread out and turn face down, the setup alone takes a lovely amount of time.

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It’s a simple game, and in the original form it’s quite clever in its strategy. It turned out that the original rules were too much for Joan to grasp. We simplified them, and it’s an Alzheimer’s game now.

With the simplification, if anyone would join in they would either be bored or win so quickly there would be no enjoyment.

Boredom is not a problem for Joan, though. She enjoys playing simplified Qwirkle.

Still, she needs a lot of reminding of the possibilities at each turn. In fact, if you watched us, you might think that the game is solitaire, with me playing against myself.

Qwirkle is one more thing that keeps her busy, and I find it fun. I’ll be looking for more games and might even try to tackle Spite and Malice again, if I can only remember the rules. I forget things!

Wouldn’t it be great if, now and then, everyone would put down their phones, turn off the TV and play table games?

Tomorrow: Chuck’s conclusions.