1.
Encoded on his genome is a cognitive bias for
pleasant memories.
He remembers only what he wants to, minimizes,
erases the rest.
He’s the only person who has heard my secret.
I counted on him
to forget it, instantly. As if double-wrapped in
cellophane, my secret
is still intact.
.
2.
I am also hard-wired. A negativity bias prevents
me from editing
the past, soaking in a soothing bath of amnesia.
Hippocampal sharp-waves
ripple, consolidate to replay flashbacks. Traces
of trauma, slights,
estranged friendships, are skulls in my belly, an
inescapable legend.