Rochelle C. Tamayo July 26, 2019
12- Abm Bezos 21st Century Literature
Reflection Paper no. 1
Before I Go to Sleep
(Part One: TODAY)
Losing memories plus inability to generate new memories is one of the most unusual yet hardest condition that someone will ever have. In the first chapter, Christine Lucas a forty-seven year old woman was introduced as a woman that’s an amnesiac. She has that uncommon condition and every time she wakes up in the morning she dont remember anything and always thought she’s just a kid, teen, or in 20’s.
There’s this scene where Christine Lucas woke up in a unfamiliar bedroom and notice that she’s lying next to a man that she didn’t recognize. She’s scared because the man wears a ring and it means married. She over thinks about what might be the reaction of the wife against her, without knowing that she’s the wife of the man.
She goes to the bathroom and sees her old self in the mirror. She also sees her picture with a name Christine and his husband named Ben. Ben tells to her that they are married for years. Ben also tells her a lot about her past but it just became a years of emptiness.
In another part of the chapter there’s this scene where a doctor named Nash calls on the phone of Christine. He tries to convince Christine that she can trust him. She asks a lot of questions and about her condition. Dr. Nash told her that she have a two main types of amnesia, where she cannot recall past events, with more recent events being most severely affected and inability to transfer memories from short-term storage into long-term storage.
Dr. Nash give back the journal to Christine where Christine writes the every single moment in her life. As she opens the journal she’s still wondering about how she wrote something on it without remembering writing.
As she skim the first page there’s written her name Christine Lucas and beneath is DONT TRUST BEN. And her past begin while she reads her journal.
I learned from this chapter that MEMORY is very complex. It defines you and me. It also makes me realized that MEMORY makes up the whole us and without it, we will just like straying into emptiness. Let’s all learn how to appreciate big and small things because it will serve as a key to fulfill our whole self.
Rochelle C. Tamayo August 2, 2019
12- Abm Bezos 21st Century Literature
Reflection Paper no. 2
Before I Go to Sleep
(Friday, 9 November)
A journal is a daily record of the things or moments thats happening to you. The reluctance to write a journal can be a key for you to reminisce your previous or past life. Christine Lucas was helped by Dr. Nash by giving her a journal where shell going to write every details that will happen, for her to remember some of the events in her life.
In this part, Christine Lucas is in a very silent room and sitting in unfamiliar bed. She knows that she needs to write every single moments and details that happens to her, in the journal before she goes to sleep. She knows that everything will be erased tomorrow because according to Ben and Dr. Nash, she have a brain
condition. She started writing on her journal privately. She doesnt want to tell Ben about it, because according to Dr. Nash he might not be happy knowing that she will undergo a treatment. Christine wrote that Dr. Nash called her but at first she didnt even remember him. She goes to Dr. Nash because of curiosity and she was drove into an office. Dr. Nash showed a clip enable for Christine to believe. Christine asks about her condition and Dr. Nash said that she has a severe impairment called episodic memory, the reason why she cant remember events or autobiographical details. As a treatment Dr. Nash showed a picture to Christine and happily shes doing well. She can now tell every detailed on the picture that was shown. After that, Dr. Nash drove back Christine and they have an agreement that Christine will tell to Dr. Nash where shell going to hide the journal before she sleeps then Dr. Nash will call to remind her every morning.
Shes still thinking about her past and wondering about it.
And her first Journal ends here.
Christine Lucas knows that half of her life is behind her thats why a journal will serve as her historical book about her life. I learned that writing in a journal is helpful in a way that it can serve as a treatment or a memory storage to those people who easily forgotten things. I realized that writing a journal will have a great impact to those people who have an amnesia or other brain disorder.
Rochelle C. Tamayo August 9, 2019
12- Abm Bezos 21st Century Literature
Reflection Paper no. 3
Before I Go to Sleep
(Friday, 10 November)
Memories are destined to fade but the memories that have a great impact to our lives will not easily fade or forgotten. Christines memory is already in the process where she can remember some part of her past piece by piece. Ben still tells her half of her life, does Ben hiding something from Christine?
The second part of Christines Journal was written at noon.
She wrote that she woke up again in unfamiliar room yet she sees again the pictures with her name and the name of his husband which is Ben. She asks again Ben about her life but Ben only tells her half of her life. She feels very empty and confused thats why Ben leaves her alone. She was reminded by Dr. Nash about the journal and to dont say anything about it to Ben. She read her first journal to have some ideas about something on the past. While reading she visualize her life at the age of 14. She sees her father saying Were going to fight this, and I promise. She remembered a part of her memories with her parents. She also write that Ben invited her for a walk. While theyre walking Ben told her about how did they met and got married. Ben said that they were totally inlove with each other. Ben told her that he buys an expensive soap as a gift during Valentines Day and he pressed the engagement ring on it, and Christine found it then she said yes, and while reading that part Im imagining myself on that situation, I find it romantic. Christine tried to remember that part because she finds it romantic too but finds nothing. After that Shes waiting for Ben to tell something about their child but he didnt say anything about it. She asks about her accident but Ben tells her that she was hit by a car and she was badly injured that time, her both legs and arm were broken. She was filled with an emptiness feeling. On the way home she visualize a memories of her with a woman and with Keith in a party inside a university. She asks Ben if she had a best friend before but Ben said that she hasnt. Christine started on having a doubt to Ben because on his answers. When the night comes she asked Ben if she ever remember him every time she wakes up in the morning, and Ben told her that she didnt but he still loves her. After that Ben kissed her and she feels that Ben wants to make love with her but she apologized and said she was tired.
Christine wants to remember Ben very much.
And her journal stop here.
This chapter makes me feel confused at the same time happy. I was confused because of the answers of Ben to the questions of Christine. I think Ben is hiding something from Christine. Does Ben really keeping the truth away? Does Christine’s memory will help her to know that truth? I learned from this part that memories that have a great impact to us will not merely forgotten.