Page 540 - Demo

Fools%u2019 Journey534but all were gone. For our return trip, we pulled onto the quicker Interstate 70 toward Indianapolis. We were definitely able to drive faster, but the semi traffic was very heavy, so after about a half-hour, we turned off to cover the rest of the way home on slower roads. I left the Interstate at State Road 109, and we soon entered Knightstown, where I asked Lynn if she remembered the Knightstown Academy. She didn%u2019t, even though we%u2019d stopped there once to take some photographs. In the past, her phenomenal memory would have recalled it clearly, but ever since she cracked her head when she fell into our pond, her memory hadn%u2019t been what it used to be. In the beginning, she didn%u2019t realize how much memory was gone, but now%u2014two years later%u2014we each noticed more missing pieces. There didn%u2019t seem to be any pattern to what she%u2019d lost, and occasionally she couldn%u2019t recall where something was stored in our home. So, not recalling the Knightstown Academy didn%u2019t surprise us, and I decided she needed to see it again.I thought the Academy was on the main drag, and I drove down Highway 40%u2014but couldn%u2019t find it. So when I spotted two teenaged girls walking on the sidewalk, I pulled over and asked for directions. Knightstown isn%u2019t a very big town, so they easily pointed the way. The slight detour was well worth it. The building was originally erected in 1876 as a Quaker school, and has since been converted into apartments for seniors, but it still has rooms for community gatherings. The architecture is of the Second Empire style, with three main floors, the top one having a mansard roof. But the most striking features are the twin four-story towers. One is topped with a large, impressive globe, the other by an equally impressive telescope. Both appear to be crafted of zinc, which matches the roof trim. As I rounded a corner, and the building came into view, Lynn actually gasped, as if seeing it for the first time. On the rest of the way home, I pointed out some other places we%u2019d photographed, some of which she remembered, others she didn%u2019t.A few weeks later, we decided to go to Bob Evans for dinner. Although we drove by the restaurant regularly, we hadn%u2019t been inside since before the Covid pandemic, more than three years earlier. After we entered and were seated, Lynn said the interior wasn%u2019t familiar at all, and I had to remind her where the rest room was. I