9/11 and Garbage Day.....I do Remember....Eventually.

  Sept 11/2014

Today is marked the13th year following of 9/11.  I remember the day well....I remember where I was when I first heard the news, .....I remember getting to a tv , as the second air plane crashed into the second building...I remember feeling frightened about what was to happen next..I remember all the who's, and whats..I remember wanting to go home and grab my two boys, and not let go.  Traumatic, terrible events that we would view live,and  would ingrained into our minds forever.  be

Pictures in books, the newspapers, and on line, captivate and yet sadden our hearts and minds.  Today we remember that horrific day, and although we may not have been directly affected, are as sad and enraged as those who had been.  It affected a nation...the world.  Living in Canada, it felt like it was just next door, happening to our friendly neighbour....

How is it possible to remember these events....so distinctly, and yet, I can not remember if the garbage and recycling go out this week, or did we do it last week?  I am not trying to make light of 9/11 by any means, rather I am struck by how something that occurs every two weeks, and has for the last 4 years, like garbage day, can just completely drop from my mind.

I began this blog by  recalling the images, feelings and emotions of 9/11, as an example of an event, 13 years earlier, that can come to my mind so quickly, with very little effort. But struggling to recall a reoccurring, weekly event in my own personal life, although insignificant in comparison to 9/11, leaves me baffled.  I eventually figure out if it is garbage week, but not without a lot of visual cues (Duh...the neighbours have it out!), to, trying to recall a related incident (Oh yes, my son asked me if 5 bags could be put out last week).  Eventually I will remember if it is garbage week, or not, but not until  I am fully frustrated with myself.

9/11 and garbage week....strange comparisons even in my own mind.  But my point is that daily living can become daunting when one must struggles with a Neurological disorder such as Parkinson's Disease....but remember, I eventually do.   9/11....I can remember all the sensory details I had experienced, and yet struggle to remember the weekly occurrences.  Remembering....that is the key word.  I would and should be more afraid if events such as 9/11 were unable to be recalled.  So, really, in the end...does it really matter if the Garbage truck flies by while the garbage bags sit on my porch?  What really matters is that eventually I remember....events that are larger than life, to miniscule, daily recollections. 

Today I remember that tragic event 13 years ago, in detail, recalling all the senses through the experience, tragic, surreal.  But ask me if I took my meds on time, fed the dog, or put out the garbage..well only time will let me tell.