I’d like to make two observations about memory lapses, mine anyway, as we age.

The first I find reassuring. The National Institutes of Health points out that “Older adults may worry about their memory and other thinking abilities, such as taking longer to learn something new. These changes are usually signs of mild forgetfulness — or age-related forgetfulness — and are often a normal part of aging.”

Because one might display  “signs of mild forgetfulness”  does not mean that are evidence of a  “serious memory problem.”

The second observation is this. One of my habitual memory lapses often results in a welcome surprise. A gift, if you will.

Here’s how it happens.

I have a well-trained coffee machine in the kitchen capable of making and pouring a 16-ounce coffee into one of my far too many coffee mugs. The mug sits comfortably on a non-heated platform.

  I’m usually at my writing table when the hankering for coffee strikes. I go into the kitchen to get the job done. I make sure the coffee machine has enough water, a fresh filter, and three scoops of coffee for the 16-ounce coffee mug on a shelf, waiting with “open arms.”

  Like the coffee machine, all my mugs are all well trained.

  I push the button, the coffee machine turns on and begins its work. I go back to my writing table to continue whatever it was I was doing.

  A couple of minutes later the coffee machine sends out a striking four beeps when the mug – it does not overfloweth – is filled with fresh coffee.

  Too late. More often than not, the four beeps, striking in sound as they might be, don’t really register. I think I know why. I’ve completely forgotten I’d made the coffee in the first place.

  And so, 10 minutes later, 20 minutes later, another coffee urge strikes, into the kitchen I go, and there’s a full mug of coffee waiting for me! A short stint in the microwave and I’m gold.

  Yes, I know. The memory lapse. It’s real. That said, so is the gift of the unexpected