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Printed from https://www.writing.com/main/profile/blog/dalericky/day/8-30-2025
by Dale Author IconMail Icon
Rated: 13+ · Book · Personal · #2276168

Each day feels new, and my memory of the one before is faint. Iโ€™m learning to adapt.

In September 2019, a seizure revealed a lime-sized meningioma pressed against my hippocampusโ€”the part of the brain that governs memory and language. The doctors said it was benign, but benign didnโ€™t mean harmless.

Surgery removed the tumor, and three days later I opened my eyes to a new reality. I could walk, I could talk, but when I looked at my wife, her name was gone. I called her Preciousโ€”the only word I could find. A failure of memory, yet perhaps the truest name of all.

Recovery has been less cure than re-calibration. Memory gaps are frequent. Conversations vanish. I had to relearn how to write, letter by halting letter. My days are scaffold by alarms, notes, and calendars.

When people ask how I am, I donโ€™t list symptoms or struggles. I simply say, โ€œSeven Degrees Left of Center.โ€ Itโ€™s not an answerโ€”itโ€™s who Iโ€™ve become.

Note
August 30, 2025 at 9:41am
August 30, 2025 at 9:41am
#1096171
My story lost its appeal because I made numerous undocumented changes. These overwhelming adjustments turned a good story into a confusing one.

This happened because I made too many changes too quickly without managing versions. Combined with my memory issues, it led to chaos. Despite this setback, I still like the story and will start over, almost from the beginning.

I will fool myself into saying today is a version 2.0; hell, I donโ€™t remember what I did yesterday anyway. Version 1.0 still exists, so all is not lost. Unfortunately, my writing style before the tumor was a pantser. Now I really need to learn how to be a plotter. Or at least find a middle ground somewhere between.


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Printed from https://www.writing.com/main/profile/blog/dalericky/day/8-30-2025