Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash
My sisters and I used to get together once in a while and when we were talking, if we couldn’t think of a word, we would just say, “Word-word…” and continue talking. Since we no longer get together—all living in different states, all (except one) older and less likely to get around much, and all trying to stay safe from the plague, that means that most of our conversations are phone conversations.
But, to get on with what I am saying, why is it that some words just simply slip away from our memories and others are always there? For instance, having just had a knee replacement six weeks ago (Sorry for no blog post last month.) I currently need to do a specific procedure on the scar tissue. Why? In order to keep the underlying tissue from forming…. Word-word… what? Why is it I can NEVER remember the word “adhesion”? No matter how many times I have repeated it, (old people spend a lot of time discussing their aches and illnesses) no matter how many times I have heard it, it always takes wing and departs.
Or like when I was talking to a sister about the thing you drive around while you are walking when you first have surgery. We both blanked out and were calling it a “crutcher”. Are you kidding me? A “crutcher”? The thing that helps you WALK? At least I have the consolation that it is no longer needed, so I don’t have to think of its name. (Maybe I should associate it with the old TV show, “Walker, Texas Ranger”…)
So why is it I can ALWAYS think of certain words and phrases which irritate me? Phrases like: “reason why” (It’s a reason. Or it’s why something happens. It is redundant to say “reason why”.) Or why do I cringe when I hear someone say she was about to “jump into the shower”? Yes, having just had knee surgery may make me paranoid about this one, but do you really know anyone who JUMPS into a shower?
Ah, the ruminations of the aging wordsmith. It will probably get worse rather than better. I am now wearing a sling and looking forward (why does that phrase have the connotation of eager anticipation? Is it still “looking forward to” if it’s into a raging forest fire or a raging lion?) to surgery at the end of the month for a deep tissue rotator cuff tear. Be prepared for more thoughts and vague wanderings of my mind. The sweet fruits of age and curiosity.
Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash