I’m trying to identify a story that I believe I read in Fantasy & Science Fiction, or possibly Asimov’s or Analog, in the early 1990s. It was about an exceedingly old woman encountered by the viewpoint character, a man (possibly a doctor), whose young daughter has a serious illness. He gradually comes to realize that the woman is three hundred years or so old – that, for example, when she speaks of a song “the old general” liked she means George Washington, a contemporary of her father’s. She is uneducated and perhaps a bit demented and doesn’t realize herself how very old she is. She may also be suffering from the same illness as the man’s daughter.
I’ve been thinking of this story for years and would love to read it again and also to know who wrote it.
I have written to the above magazines with this query. If anyone recognizes this story or knows of a forum dedicated to identifying science fiction stories, I’d appreciate it.