Three elderly men walked into the doctor’s office for what was supposed to be a routine memory evaluation. They shuffled in with the cautious confidencThree elderly men walked into the doctor’s office for what was supposed to be a routine memory evaluation. They shuffled in with the cautious confidence of men who had lived long enough to take life’s tests with a dose of humor. The doctor, clipboard in hand, greeted them and explained he would begin with a few simple questions. Simple, however, was not the word any of them would have chosen.
He turned to the first man and asked, “What is three times three?”
The man straightened up as if preparing for a grand performance. “Two hundred seventy-four,” he announced with pride, convinced he had cracked some mysterious numerical code. The doctor raised an eyebrow but kept his polite smile, scribbling something on his chart while silently wondering what kind of mental gymnastics led to that answer.
Then he moved on to the second man and repeated the question. “What is three times three?”
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