John had always been famously forgetful. Everyone knew it—birthdays, appointments, even his own anniversary once. So when he ran into his friend Bill at the grocery store, he could hardly wait to share the news.
“Bill!” he said, grinning. “You’re not going to believe this. My memory problem? I finally fixed it!”
Bill raised his eyebrows. “Really? You? Fixed your memory?”
“I’m telling you, it’s incredible,” John said. “Best decision I ever made. I went to a specialist—he taught me a whole system for remembering names, dates, details… everything!”
“That’s fantastic,” Bill said. “What kind of system? Maybe I should try it.”
And then it happened. John froze. His eyes drifted upward as he searched his mind.
“You know…” he said slowly, “what do you call that flower? The one with the long stem… little thorns… big red bloom on top?”
Bill said, “A rose?”
John slapped his forehead. “Yes! Rose!”
He turned and called toward the next aisle,
“Rose! What’s the name of that memory doctor I’m seeing?”