DO YOU HAVE MEMORY ISSUES? Are you getting more forgetful as time passes? Years ago, a friend of mine told me that she was so concerned about this common problem that she began to ingest “memory pills,” a supplement that was supposed to aid one’s memory. However, from time to time she forgot to take them! What a dilemma!

My wife and I came face to face with this problem recently. We were in Traverse City, Michigan for a celebration at one of the church’s we served. A lady in the church approached us to remind us that 14 years earlier we had sold our home to her. Then she asked if, before we left town, would we like to stop by for coffee to see the changes they had made to the house? We agreed and the next morning we headed for her residence.

Problem: we couldn’t recall exactly how to get there. We weren’t sure just what road to take to get into the development. Fourteen years is a long time. We didn’t want to use our cell phone to ask for directions and thereby avoid some embarrassment, so we drove past the area and decided to turn around and try one of the entry roads, hoping we could somehow remember a familiar landmark or street name. Have you ever been there?

As I turned into the driveway of a business of some sort, my wife said, “Look at the sign!” The name of the business was at the top and underneath it in small letters were the words, “Senior Memory Clinic.” We laughed so hard we could hardly contain ourselves.

As we approached the development again, I thought I recognized a street name, so we gave it a try. We drove around for a while and then, bingo! There it was, “Heatherwood.” All was not lost. We had a wonderful visit and after a while, headed for home.

The next time you get frustrated because you can’t remember something, remember this tale. It just might ease the stress a little.