I just... I don't even know where to start with this. It happened today, in front of everyone, you know? Like, I was in the middle of a lecture – 18th-century French Revolution, super specific stuff, I’ve given this lecture a million times – and I was talking about the storming of the Bastille, right? And I paused, like I always do, to ask the class the exact date. Usually, it’s just a beat, a dramatic pause, then someone chirps out "July 14th, 1789" and we move on. But today… nothing. It was just gone. It was GONE. Like, completely blank. I stood there, looking at them, these young faces, and I could feel my own face going hot, like I was blushing or something, but it was just pure panic. My mouth was dry. My heart was just POUNDING, like a drum in my chest. I *know* the date. I've known the date for fifty years, probably longer than some of these kids have been alive. It’s not some obscure fact, it’s like… foundational. And I just stood there, speechless, like an idiot. One of the students, a smart kid, eventually offered it up, and I just… nodded, mumbled something about a brain fart, and kept going. But I wasn't really there. I finished the lecture, signed off on their assignment sheets, did the whole professor thing, but my hands were shaking. I got back to my office and just sat there, staring at my syllabus, thinking, *what the HELL just happened?* This isn't like forgetting a name, you know? This is a core part of what I DO. My whole career. My whole identity, almost. Is this it? Is this the start of… something? I'm 65. I’m still sharp, I think. I mean, I *was* sharp. Now I just feel… exposed. Terrified, actually. I’m scared to go back in there next week. What if it happens again? What if it's worse? My review is coming up in the spring and I just… I can’t have this. I just can’t.