I am a girl of many talents (modest not being one of them,
clearly) but one talent that I excel in, and can probably hold classes and give
out honours and distinction to others is how to forget birthdays of your
friends. Even in this age of technology and facebook, where you have numerous
apps that help remind you and get notifications to wish someone, I am capable
of ignoring them all and being happily oblivious when a friend’s birthday
passes by. Countless times I have seen these reminders pop up on my screen and
have promised myself that I will definitely send a message later in the day,
but my mind is like a sieve when it comes to birthdays apparently.
The brain is certainly a funny organ, and mine is on a
completely different platform most of the time. It can remember useful and
useless information with alarming clarity but it always fumbles when it comes
to birthdays for some reason. In all, my brain can remember only 5 birthdays
(my parents and siblings) and it is shocking compared to the number of people I
meet and interact with on a regular basis, not to mention very embarrassing.
But I have learned to accept it a little, more than that; my
dearest friends have managed to understand this deficiency in me and only managed
a chuckle or two on my behalf. Like R, now I want to respect privacy and thus
am not giving away names. I have been friends with R for close to 6 years now,
which means 6 birthdays have gone by. Now she has wished me for each of those 6
birthdays even when we were in the midst of final exams. On the other hand, I
have wished her only for 1 birthday (earlier this year) and she was a bit
shocked that I remembered for the first time. That’s 5 birthdays that I have
missed and being the sweet person that she is, she has not held a grudge
against me and is one of my best friends today.
Another of my friends K, seeing my strike rate with R, was
appalled and devised a unique but effective way of reminding me her birthday. She
simply calls and messages me a week before her birthday, now to some this may
seem extensive but it works (at least in my case) and don’t worry K, I remember
your birthday is coming up.
But my most embarrassing forgetting a friend’s birthday
incident is from a couple of years back. I had in my infinite carelessness
forgotten another friend’s birthday. Now on this day, this friend called me up
and we chatted for like 15 mins about odds and ends and then I simply hung up,
still not realizing that it was his birthday. The next day another friend
called me and asked if I had wished him, the ball finally dropped. Most
embarrassing because the poor chap had given me a call himself despite his
birthday.
Now that’s what I call a clutter brain. But what’s cool is
that all these people are still my friends in spite of my poor memory and they
never forget my birthday, even though me being a March born means my birthday
falls right during exam month. So thank you to all who have been a victim of my
forgetfulness and here’s to all the birthdays that I have missed and all the
future birthdays that I will miss (ya I am not too optimistic).
So, how about you, missed any important dates lately?
Excellently written! Makes the reader's lips smile and eyes sparkle , which are very good reactions. So proud of you.
ReplyDeleteThank you Di
DeleteLoved this :) <3
ReplyDeleteHighly obliged.... n totly agree wid u diddu !!
Hahaha, will remember this year again, promise
DeleteSuperb yar:)
ReplyDeleteI was actually shocked on my last birthday as you were not in india & you called up to wish me & that to without any reminder :P
See I am improving K, thanks
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