steep one sprig in hot water for the time it takes to say, slowly, the names of everyone in the room. drink while still warm. afterwards, write down the one thing it was important not to forget and put it where it cannot be ignored — under the cup, against the door, in the shoe. forgetfulness is not the absence of memory; it is the absence of a place to put it.
ingredients
- one sprig, fresh or dried
- the names of those nearby
- a slip with one important thing
- a place that cannot be ignored
- the count of the kettle to its whistle
does not treat the forgetfulness that protects. some things are mislaid on purpose by the body that knows better than the mind.
see the memory, the forget, the thimble; and the recurring loss of keys, which is its own complaint.