Do I Know You?

Being the season for gatherings and close conversation with perfect strangers, the awkward moment when someone comes up to you and says, “ I haven’t seen you in years.”

You look at the face and there is no physical recognition, charmingly say with a light jiggle, “Oh hi there YOU, how have you been (you better tell me something to recharge my memory of who you are)?”

Or you could look completely befuddled at the other’s recognition of a time or place where we connected and ask the question hopefully getting a name or description of how we know each other, “Pardon? “

The other person tells a name and describes a situation, and you still recall anything. 

In polite circles, the phase of, “Excuse me but I don’t remember (then pause), but it has been a pleasure meeting you.” 

Even the ones who we feel we know come to a face-to-face conversation and looking into the other and ask, “Do I Know You?”

 

After a moment, I put down the mirror and walked into the other room.