The late Dr Sangster once preached a sermon with the intriguing title: Remember to Forget. He got the idea from a line in Immanuel Kant’s journal, which simply said: ‘Remember to forget Lampe.’ Lampe was his manservant who had been with him for decades, and the old philosopher had come to depend on him for so much. But then he discovered Lampe had been systematically robbing him for years, and so he dismissed him. But despite this he missed his old companion and found himself continually saddened that he was no longer around; hence his journal entry, Remember to forget Lampe.’
Forgetfulness is a problem we all face with age. But there are times when the ability to forget is a blessing, because it releases us from our own fear of failure and from resentments that twist us inwardly. Those are the times we also need to ‘Remember to forget.’