This is a beautiful picture isn't it? You've probably seen nicer painting's but what do (you) see? A big rock? Some shade trees at the edge of a stream? Mountains, mostly shrouded out by the trees in the far background? So do I, and so does everyone else who looks at it directly. Let's say that this painting made such an impression on me that I couldn't stop talking about it. Then over time my memory of it fades, and each time I describe it, I misremember a detail here and there. It's only a small detail, nothing important. Right?
You were there that day a few years ago when I showed it to you. Remember? The one with that huge rock? Remember? That nice comfy thick of shade trees near the river? Of course (you) noticed that for some reason, I put more emphasis on the rock this time and now it's almost a cliff, the way I describe it. You just loved that painting so much yourself, that it made a good story, so you didn't correct the record. It would have been rude to interrupt. You knew that I really meant a big rock, so no big deal.
As long as I described the same basic components of the original painting I shared with you that day, I'm still technically correct. But is it the same thing? Even though, it's been so long now since you've seen it, maybe that rock was bigger than you remembered? Now that you think about it, why haven't I ever talked about how gigantic the mountains were in the background? No, no, no, This is more like what that painting from years ago looked like. For the most part anyway.
What you loved most about the painting from the beginning, was the mountains in the distance anyways. Yeah...that's right....the mountains were pretty impressive looking. Now I remember...Finally it's been so long and distant in memory, you convinced me that I was wrong and you remembered it better. Now, more time passes and you die, but I remain behind to continue sharing the details of this amazing painting that (we) saw so long ago, that thanks to you, I can now remember with better clarity a few of those forgotten details.
That amazing painting, that decades later I'm still harping on about it. That painting of that treacherous cliff, that had a big shade tree near the top of it? Remember? It was a good thing that my friend helped me remember how big that tree was, before he died. Don't worry, I didn't forget about the mountains or that stream somewhere in the background. It's important to keep the facts straight so I can accurately convey to future family generations how inspiring it was to me.
That painting, that I've described many times to family and friends over the years. To my children and grandchildren. In hind sight, I should have just bought the painting when I had the chance, because I never realized how important it would become to me. That painting from years ago that people remember me talking about, with that towering cliff and a big tree on top? Remember? Right! The one with the mountains in the background, don't worry I didn't forget!
But you were posting on Facebook or Twitter while I was talking about this painting and you missed that detail about the river, and now I'm dead, and the river is gone from my legendary tale. Leaving behind a reasonably fit, yet moderately attractive corpse and no longer able to correct the story every time you tell it wrong, because you were always on your damn cellphone and have a short attention span because of it.
If only you were there that day, and seen it for yourself or maybe paid attention. You would have noticed how certain facts about the original painting, over time became distorted and creates a picture very different in the end, than the one that actually existed many years ago. Remember? That painting, with a cliff and some stupid trees somewhere at the top? Yeah...something like that, but who cares?! What's on TV?
What a sad way to live.
Sincerely,
Lonnie T. Locke LMT