Re memory tests (Letters, 1 July), my mother was taken to hospital some years ago after an infection overwhelmed her. She was confused and stressed. A doctor wanted to check her mental capacity and gave her paper and a pencil, asking that she write down a sentence with a subject, an object and a verb.
I was trying to find the words to say that this was unfair, given her health. A lot of people might not even know what was meant by a subject and an object. But my mother wrote: “I will not do this”, giving us a withering look.
Ross Bradshaw
Nottingham
• My brother was given memory tests on his frequent hospital visits in his later years. When asked if he could count backwards from 20 to zero, he would reply: “Shall I do that in English, French, German, Welsh, Norwegian or Latin?”
Tim Scott
London
• When Elizabeth II was on the throne, I was asked by my practice nurse: “How many children does the queen have?” She was not amused by my reply: “Too many!”
Jason Hill
Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire
• Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
