Eight o'clock Friday morning arrived rather quickly. Harris and I were seated across the table from one another in our customary positions. I had just removed my father's book from an antique leather case that resembled a smaller version of a mail carrier's satchel. It had crossed my mind to use this case so the book would have some kind of protection rather than just lying on the front seat of my car. But once again, it had not crossed my mind to examine the book before going to my appointment. Why had I forgotten and let the time get away from me? I slowly set the book on the table, next to the wooden box that occupied its familiar position in the center of the table.
His eyes fell on the book that now lay between us. "So tell me, what did you discover in studying the condition of the book?"
I was about to tell him a story of my diligent study of the book, but I could see in his eyes that he already knew that had not happened. I found myself averting his gaze and confessing, "I forgot. I know you asked me to inspect the book. But it just slipped my mind."
He apparently was going to ignore my answer. "How was your day in the office yesterday?"
Watching the expectant look on his face, I unloaded. "Oh, man, it was a disaster! My first patient of the day was a case presentation for a six-crown bridge on his front teeth."
"Maxillary or mandibular?"
I was visibly taken back. "Ah... maxillary. Do you know anatomy?"
"Oh yes, anatomy has always been one of my favorite pastimes, but please continue."
I tilted my head and looked at him with a growing curiosity. "Well, anyway, this patient had been to the offices of three other dentists and they had simply not made sense to him about the best way to fix his teeth. I was going to be different. I had done my best thorough exam and made x-rays. I even made impressions of his teeth to help me plan. But when he came in for his appointment this morning, I had completely forgotten to look at the models and x-rays or come up with any plan. I am so busy at the office that it just got pushed to the side of my desk and I forgot. Our treatment planning session turned into a combination of my doing improvisational theater and back-pedaling. He saw through the whole charade and left the appointment wanting to think about it. With this economy, it seems more and more of my patients are thinking about it!"
The bookbinder's smile lowered to form a thin line on his face. "Let's handle the economy at a later date. Have you ever thought that curiosity and memory are closely linked?" He leaned toward me. "It is nearly impossible to forget something that you truly remembered in the first place. I would suggest that you can remember many things. Go ahead. Tell me some of your memories."
Now, this was a challenge. I wanted to show the old man that despite what had happened with the bridge case, I had a great memory. I went back as far as I could remember. "I remember a trip to Chicago with family when I was seven, when we went to the Museum of Science and Industry. I stood by huge stuffed elephants and we walked through a big model of a human heart. My whole family was together and we sent postcards to my grandparents." I was surprised by my outburst.
He was close to laughing as he said, "Wow! That was really something. Welcome back!" Then, he became more serious as he continued, "You see, we do not forget what we really remember. Really, all knowledge is remembering what we are truly interested in. The key to being knowledgeable about something is to be interested or curious about it."
I slowly nodded in agreement, as I began to mentally make an inventory of what things interested me.
Again, seemingly the bookbinder could read my mind. "Before you compile your list of things, would it also be fair to say that the key to being knowledgeable about someone is to be interested or curious about them?"
