There are memories I have that are so old, stories I’ve heard stories so many times, home movies I’ve seen in 8 mm, video, and DVD that I don’t always know what is the true memory.
My cousin Dennis was two years younger than me and was there for some of the more freak show aspects of my life. He could tell me a story of something that happened and see it in a different way than me (like maybe he wasn’t in a blackout or something).
And I have memories of Dennis that go way back, stuff he would never remember except if he heard the story.
Like the time when we were in the hospital together. The picture in my mind is of Dennis standing in a crib and me in the same room. It is a picture in my mind, like an old black & white photo, but that photo never existed in reality.
I asked his mother, my Aunt Eleanor what the true story is. Here’s what she said:
Dennis and I were in the hospital at the same time, but not in the same room. I was in because they thought I had appendicitis. Dennis fell and cut his ear on a teacart. I was crying when my mom left and Dennis was crying when Aunt Eleanor left.
When Aunt El came back later that day to pick him up the nurse said I had been going back and forth from my room to his, visiting him throughout the day.
He was 20 months old; I was 3 and a half. Ummm, do teacarts still exist?
2 comments:
What's a teacart? how does one fall and cut their ear on one of these! it's funny how the mind works!
Who is andre?
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