I was there - I think

'Memory is the diary we all carry with us, ' Oscar Wilde wrote.
But unlike photography or a written diary, memory does not 'capture' the past. It haunts us with every name we forget, the fear that dementia is in our future.The author takes a personal journey and sets these fictional stories (a few of them about people with dementia) with a principal theme of looking at a humane yet colourful world, in case we forget.
'So, where did you fly to?'
'Many places, ' Keith answers.
'Like where?'
He looks blank. I show New York on the world map-'Yes, I think, ' he says. Berlin?-'No.' Paris?-'Yes, but I think I have also been there on a boat.'
Next to him is the framed photograph I know of his son and two daughters.
'Who are these?'
Keith takes the frame and looks at it for a long time.
'I don't know, really. Shall we go for a walk?'
Some of these stories have tragic sides, but they make you feel human and even are comforting. The author does not touch up people he likes but does not hide his hatred for injustices. The issues raised are often provocative and controversial, but his sympathies are clear.