Forgetfulness, a curse in the guise of freedom


Forgetfulness is the theme of the day that went by the name of yesterday. The topic was not related to the occasional lapses in memory associated with the old age where you struggle to recollect placing an inanimate object like a key, a document or a book. On the contrary, it was much larger than the wear and tear of our internal memory.  The theme is about how we unconsciously relegate events and people to the background, feigning ignorance at first and failing recollection later.

Yesterday, I was walking down the elegantly designed stairs in my work campus which takes you directly from the third floor to the ground. While coming down the stairs, you are transported to the busy underground station of Canary Wharf. The station serving the financial district of London has a set of escalators where your descent gives you the sensation of a star falling down to the earth. While descending the steps, I was not latched on to this particular sensation. Instead, I was on the phone. As it was dark, I misjudged, and as a result, I fell down. There were two things which save me from the fate of Humpty Dumpty. I was one step short of a landing to break the monotony of stairs. There was a gentle soul who gave a helping hand. I am not sure which had a more significant effect on eliminating the harm that might have befallen me. 

After this incident, I ended up talking on the phone with my uncle. As I haven't spoken to him for a long time and he was having challenges with his health, there were pangs of guilt for my inability to spend time on important things and people. Over the phone, he had a request for me. Strangely, the people who matter always will put a demand on the only thing you have in scarcity. Time. They never ask for anything which can be bought. Then, why are we always worried about making money? Why are we spending most of the time to make money? I didn't think twice before agreeing to what he was asking. Even while nodding affirmative, I heard that strange voice in my head which warned me that I may take a while to fulfill the wish. I also knew I would forget the request soon.

The day has shown my uncanny ability to forget on two separate occasions. The second was the promise to the uncle. In the course of the next few days, the promise will stop haunting me. The first occasion was the good Samaritan who helped me back on my feet after my fall. I was busy picking up my phone from the ground and was happy there wasn't any damage to it. So, I could muster a mute and mumbled thank-you. At that time, I was more interested in resuming the conversation on the phone. The strange fact is the person at the other end didn't notice the commotion at my end.

Picture Courtesy: Rundform

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