As soon as I walked in, I could feel everyone’s energy lifted. Just the presence of dogs makes people happy. Although I love dogs, since I’m allergic, I wasn’t able to have as much fun with them as most other people did. When I saw the trainers explain what these dogs were capable of, however, I realized that their purpose was far more than just on-the-surface happiness. Their purpose was to provide essential help to autistic patients, who depend on them to function.

There is no way to appreciate what these dogs are capable of on the outside. The intense training and resources behind these dogs are staggering, but on the outside, they look just like ordinary dogs. Guiding Eyes’ presentation just served as a reminder in a general sense that we should look beyond outside appearances and appreciate the inside of people, because little can we truly know how precious people can be to others just from how they appear.