Because He Couldn't, Let Us Remember HM
December 5, 2008
Lifecycle | Social Action
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 By Gardening Grandma
I sometimes suspect the urge to make the world a better place is part of the DNA of every Jew, yet I recognize that it runs in the veins of people of all persuasions, often when they're not even aware of their actions.
An obit of "H.M., an Unforgettable Amnesiac," appears on the front page of this morning's New York Times. After experimental brain surgery in 1953 to correct uncontrollable seizures, he lost the ability to form new memories. And, because he and his family were willing to be the object of intensive study, the world of modern neuroscience was born.
For 55 years, each time H.M. met a friend, each time he ate a meal,
each time he walked in the woods, it was as if for the first time.
God's world was created anew each day for him.
Judaism teaches us that we are God's partner in Tikkun olam--repairing the world. Because H.M. had no memory, he could not know that by the simple act of living, he was working with God and giving us and future generations a gift far beyond measure.
The article ends with a simple line. "Henry Gustav Molaison, born on Feb. 26, 1926, left no survivors. He left a legacy in science that cannot be erased."
To that I add, Amen.
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