Big Wide World

i was watching TLC the other day, and there was a story on titled "The Man with the 7 second Memory" It's a true story about a man named Clive Wearing, who, because of a freak virus travelling to his brain, has no memory of anything longer than seconds at a time. The only things that he remembers is that he loves his wife, and that he plays the piano.

20 years ago, before this happened, he was a very vibrant, intelligent music composer. But one day, he came down with what everyone assumed to be the flu, and a week later, the virus destroyed his hippocampus and just like that, the man cannot remember anything.

it was just the most devestating thing to watch. I mean imagine what that means. Its not just that he can't remember things, people, places. Every time he turns around, he's seeing everything for the first time. He can't read, cause he can't remember the sentence before, he can't develop his mind, he can't grow as a person. he's stuch in this emptiness, this vortex, of nothingness. He explains it as death.
i cried like i've never cried before. i've cried tears of sympathy before, of course, but this was so much more. Who are we if not a collection of ideas, theories, thoughts, and memories. that's how we become ourselves. i just felt so much for him and i imagine that being reduced to just this void of no continuity woul be devastating. so i cried and cried. really, if you have TLC find out when it's going to be on and watch it. it'll break your heart.