Alzheimer’s and dementia are devastating diseases for not just the people afflicted with them, but for their families as well. Their loved ones are forced to watch their loved one slowly slip away as Alzheimer’s and dementia rip their memories away from them.

While there are many difficult moments when it comes to caring for someone with Alzheimer’s, every once in awhile, there is a moment of clarity that makes it all worthwhile. One of these moments happened when Eliane Rusk asked her father Norm if he had Alzheimer’s, and his answer is both hopeful and heartwarming.

Norm was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s back in 2014 when he was 89 years-old. Eliane immediately decided to become his caretaker, and she now spends every day with him doing things like playing games and helping him to rediscover one of his favorite hobbies.

Eliane remembered that when she was a child, Norm liked painting gorgeous works of art with watercolor paints. As the years went on and he got more busy, he stopped painting, but his daughter decided that now was the perfect time to reintroduce the hobby to him. He was overjoyed when she stocked up on paints and presented them to him so that he could create art again!

Eliane said that though there are bad days, she is still enjoying the time that she has with her father.

“To me, it’s like a sacred time,” she said. “We’re in the moment together.”

In the video below, you’ll see Eliane ask Norm if he has Alzheimer’s. Without missing a beat, he looks at her with a smile and says, “Yeah. I know I got it!”

This moment let Elaine know that through all the cloudiness, the father she knows and loves is still there!