How can you solve 1 + 1 if there is only one 1?

I don’t get how you can solve 1 + 1.

(This is a serious question.)

I always think: which ‘1’ are we talking about? One apple?

Then it’s apple + apple = two apples, which is also wrong since we are talking about any apple (an apple plus an apple).

It feels like, in math, the adjective is switched with the noun, so to speak.

IMO, it should be ‘this apple’ plus ‘that apple’ = two apples (this apple and that apple).

The problem with starting with numbers only is that they exist purely in theory—it’s weird to disconnect them from objects completely.

It’s like starting with the adjective instead of the specific object you’re talking about, which is the other way around. Or starting with the least important characteristic of a specific object.

Therefore, 1 + 1 doesn’t really exist, right? When you attach it to a certain object, it’s not about just any ‘1,’ but two specific ‘1’s—and since there is only one specific ‘1,’ you can’t solve 1 plus 1, because it implies that there are two of the same ‘1’s.

Why am I wrong?

I seriously don’t get this.