My memory isn’t what it used to be, and never was.
But then, I remember the odd things.
Sitting with old friends, I remind them of the time some
years back when they were renovating their bathroom and found their contractor
sleeping off a hangover in the (dry and empty) bathtub.
“It’s amazing that you remember that,” they say.
Would anyone forget
such a sight, even if relayed second hand?
Walking with a friend, I remind her how ten years ago she enlisted
a city cop to drive us to her car, parked a few blocks away on an empty side
street. We got out of a play and it was dark, and she decided it was unsafe. A
policeman reluctantly gave us a ride in his marked-fully-lit-“cage,” And I told
her that if any of my acquaintances would see us going by I would never forgive
her.
“I forgot all about this,” she said. “You have an amazing
memory.
Dah-ling, it was my
one and only ride in a police car (so far.) Would you have forgotten that?
I remind my husband of the first time we met, when he walked into the textile gallery where I worked . It was
September. He remembers it not at all.
Now, really!
I probably won’t remember your name unless you repeat it a
few times, and then some. I often forget where I parked my car. I consistently manage
to forget at least one essential item from my grocery-shopping list (and forget
the list on the refrigerator.)
But some things, dear September, I remember.
I tend to remember things from my past better than things in the moment, which sounds like what you do, too.
ReplyDeleteActually, I think I remember what is meaningful to me rather than the laundry-list sort of things. If it is evocative of something greater, it sticks.
DeleteUnfortunately, I tend to remember things that I wish I could forget--the incredibly embarrassing things, the hurtful things (even if unintentional) I wish I could unsay, the unkind things I wish I could undo,...
ReplyDeleteI would guess these "failures" carry extra meaning for you, Evelyn. You strive to be good. (And you are successful, from my POV)
DeleteMy memory is not what it was that's for sure. I have to have it written down or in my calendar or it's just not happening.
ReplyDeleteAh, the handy-dandy calendar. I use the virtual and the wall kind, just to make sure... I tell myself it's less a mark of forgetfulness than of a busy person ;)
DeleteNice post. It really is odd what we remember and what we don't. I think I would remember the contractor sleeping in the bathtub, though. :-)
DeleteI don't marvel at what I remember, or even what I choose to forget. I am astonished at the things that seem so memorable to me and others forgot...
DeleteI remember events that most other people seem to forget. I have trouble with names, and I forget things on the grocery list even when it's in writing and I'm carrying it in my hand.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
You'll certainly remember the name IRMA... I hope you came through this storm with you belongings intact, Janie.
DeleteMemory is an interesting thing. The older we get, the fuller our file cabinets in our head becomes. Oftentimes, I'm like I know that, I have it filed away somewhere. And the harder I try to remember that something, the more it ducks into the shadows.. If I focus on something else, it'll bob up to the surface. There, how's that for some mixed memory metaphors?
ReplyDeleteI was thinking about the tucked away and inaccessible memories just this morning, because one of our cats, (who was adopted from the city shelter at age three) has some odd habits that I can only imagine came from her previous life with another family. She can't tell me about them, of course. I use my imagination.
DeleteLike you, I always remember odd events from long ago, usually ones I can visualize. It seems some people can remember everything they ate at a particular wedding, reunion, or wherever, whereas I'm more apt to remember what is said.
ReplyDeleteFunny-- I NEVER remember what I ate... It must be low on my memory-pole.
Delete