Whatchamacallit

I am losing it. Slowly I am losing that ability to remember a particular name, a place or a word at the right time.

Yesterday we were having a a heated discussion with the society secretary about BMC's proposal to introduce a hawkers' zone in our area. Right at the most opportune moment , exactly when it was my turn to address the issue, I forgot the term 'hawker'. So here I was nudging my husband...

Me _"What do you call those people who sell their wares ?''

My husband - Shop keepers?

Me - No, no. You know those who line up on the streets and display their stuff ? And then sell them?

Husband - "Hookers?"

How did you think I reacted?

I was enraged.

All this while the secretary was watching us like a hawk. And then it struck me.

That's right...hawkers. And thank god the heated discussion continued on the right line after that.

It keeps happening all the time. I address my elder daughter by my younger one's name. She gets mad ." Mom, I am not Ayushi."

I feel guilty. "Sorry baby, It was just a slip of the tongue."

To avoid such situations from happening again, I now call her 'baby'. Whew. Motherhood is tough on a forgetful mind.

It is not just the names. I also forget incidents. Like once my sister in law, who is a very keen observer of women's dresses, asked me " Do you remember the diamond set the bride was wearing ?" Squirming I said "Yeahhhh! Was n't that gorgeous?" All the while trying desperately to remember did we actually attend a wedding together???

Then there are those incidences with the purse. I keep losing it. Just when the milk man or the presswallah comes for payment, I have trouble recalling where I kept it last. So then begin my efforts to involve the children in hunting for my elusive purse. It starts with a request, "Will you please look for my purse"? Then it becomes a threat. "Look for it or else no T.V." and ultimately turns into a bribe. "The one who finds it first gets Rs 50 from it." I am so bad at this motherhood thing.

And then there are those annoying dates. The birthdays and the anniversaries. Dates of the parent teacher meetings. Arrival or departure dates of those numerous people who come to my house. The date of the distribution of school uniform. I started making notes in my cell phone, but could not find the blasted thing when it rang. I forgot where I kept it.

I confess, initially I used to be rather worried about the state of my mind, but now I have sort of calmed myself down. If ever my mind becomes totally empty, devoid of anything substantial, my husband and my children would have to deal with it, not I. I will be in a blissful state. Imagine what a relief it will be not to remember who is coming to my house that day and what is his favourite food.

So now that I have established that losing my, er, you know, that thing...the faculty by which the human mind stores information , is not really my problem but my family's, I would like to ask you something... do you guys ever go through the same thing once in a while? This sudden loss of, you know...that word, that I vaguely remember starts with an 'm'? Let me know. I will be glad if I am not the only one with this whatchamacallit....