My husband & I have been - intentionally - without a television for almost two years. We don't watch even Stewart or Colbert online. But, thanks to our itty-bitty dvd play, we do enjoy a daily dose of Boston Legal.
Why Boston Legal? It's genuine adult T.V., the best sort of educational programming.
Seriously? Absolutely.
Today's episode introduced us to propranolol, a medication that can help suppress traumatic memories. The question being argued in court - is it more helpful or harmful to suppress memory, even horrific ones?
Imagine having the ability to wipe out memories that threaten our sense of security. I thought about some of my grannie clients - what if they had, many years ago, the chance to obliterate the heartbreaking memory of the death of a young love, the loss of a child?
Most of my grannie clients think it's wrong to remember painful moments. Actually, it can be surprisingly helpful when a sad memory surfaces during a gab.
Take this past Saturday. I was having supper with a client & some of her senior residence friends. It was an especially tender time for me, during a week that marked both my father's death, many decades ago, and a beloved brother's, his youngest son, even further back. I commented to the table how it's beyond my comprehension to imagine a parent's pain at the loss of a child.
Two of my older dinner companions knew the pain - both talked about the loss of a child, one at 23, the other at 2 weeks. Looking in their eyes, I saw them as the young & not-so-young mothers they were. Their open sharing of that moment bound everyone around the table in mutual compassion.
Would they have wiped their minds clear of that pain? Would it, could it, serve a greater use?
Interesting, the string of thoughts set off by a healthy helping of Boston Legal!
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