Amnesia (Short Story)

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Me and fifty men were turning aside for a bit of water. We all had amnesia and could remember
nothing except that we were a kind of animal. We remembered the work we used
to do, me an accountant, some engineers, some lawyers. But not one personal detail came
back to us. Not one name, barely the concept of past.
And we were out in a wild patch of forest. It was hilly and cool and filled with birds and gray
squirrels. We had been wandering in this state for about two weeks. One of the engineers
knew a lot about camping and hunting so he guided us and kept us fed and watered. We had
no plans for there was not a good way to make any plans without personal knowledge. All
that we could do was wander.
It was the water brook that offered my first clue. It was really just a gulley, but the water was
clear and the engineer said it was safe to drink. We were walking at night to avoid the heat. Something strange filled the air in that place. I was the last one to bend down for a drink. I was leaning forward into the ditch when the reflection of the sky, pinpricked with the lumins above,, caught my eye and gave me my first personal memory.


It was a memory from another wood and a time when I was young. I was with my dad and we were walking. We started out with a conversation about human beings, but then he became silent and watchful. We saw a clear space ahead of us and made for it. It was a dirt road and the other side was a ditch, a muddy and, in a couple places, watery ditch. My dad led us carefully down into one side, avoiding the mud wherever possible. Once we came even with the water, the light hit it and I could see the reflection of the sky, indian blue with thick, bulky clouds.
My dad let it sink in that old ditchwater could be so beautiful and then pointed out
that this old ditch held the sky for a moment. He said he wanted me to remember. “Remember,” he said, “when a human being does a kindness, they mirror the love of God.”
“Remember”, he said.


Suddenly, I had a dad and was a human. We were all humans.

To be continued …

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