Each week I will pose what I think is a provocative question for your consideration. By provocative, I don’t mean a question that will cause annoyance or anger. Nor do I mean a question intended to arouse sexual desire or interest.
What I do mean is a question that is likely to get you to think, to be creative, and to provoke a response. Hopefully a positive response.
Earlier this week I wrote a post I called The Life and Death Paradox. It covered three rather provocative topics: abortion, sex education, and the death penalty. Not surprisingly, that post generated some very provocative comments. So that’s gonna be a tough act to follow.
This week’s provocative question came to mind when my son asked me a question. He wanted to know where we lived when I sold my motorcycle, and I couldn’t remember whether it was in New Jersey or Pennsylvania. I tried and tried, but came up empty. I couldn’t even recall the last time I rode it.
So, I decided to ask a question about human memory, which has been shown to be incredibly unreliable. With that in mind, here is this week’s provocative question:
“How do you know which of your memories are genuine and which have been altered over time or even made up?”
If you choose to participate, write a post with your response to the question. Once you are done, tag your post with #FPQ and create a pingback to this post if you are on WordPress. Or you can simply include a link to your post in the comments.
And most important, have fun.
This, That, and the Other 
What was the question again?
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🤔
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As we get older and closer to the end of the road; at least for me, memories materialize more frequently, in other words, they appear to me more often.
My earliest was when I was about two years old, walking down the sidewalk with my mother and her lady friend. I remember sitting down as if to say, not taking another step. My mother kept on walking away from me and in my head at that time I remember she seemed to be fading away because she was so far away.
Now that I am an adult I realize she wasn’t that far perhaps only 10′ or so, but I still remember her as abandoning me, the fear I felt at that time will always be imprinted within, the fear of being alone.
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As I get older, my early memories remain pretty clear. As you say, imprinted on the mind. It’s my recent memories, like what we had for dinner last night, that fade all too quickly.
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Or where did I put my keys?
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Exactly!😆
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Not quite answering your question, but I thought this post that I wrote 3 years ago was appropriate for the debate 😉
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It most certainly is. My parents would never have promoted a hot dog eating contest at our house!
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Oh believe me, it was the only eating contest that ever took place in our house LOL This was my dad’s idea (he thought he was being very funny, until the big finale! Mouahahahaha)
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Good question, Fandango 🙂
Sense memory is the most intriguing. For instance you may have a strong memory of riding your motorcycle, of an experience while riding it which impacted your senses.
If you tap into the sensory memory it can sometimes give time and place details, although not always if it’s too fragmented or if your mind just doesn’t see any point in recalling irrelevant to the now information.
If you sold it because of an incident which was emotional, then you can use the emotional memory to fill in the blanks. But again if your mind is like – this data is not necessary for the now – it’s harder to get at it.
I read your provocative subjects post. It’s an interactive post, those always get more attention because readers feel invited to get personally involved in what is being discussed. It’s like when you’re with someone and they ask for your opinion – suddenly you’re interested in what someone is saying because your opinion about what they’re saying matters to someone else.
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Smells often trigger vivid memories, as do certain songs. But I wonder, even with those “vivid” memories, how much detail has been lost, if my mind has embellished aspects of the memories, or if it even happened the way I remember it. As to my motorcycle, I remember details about various motorcycle camping trips my wife and I took together. And I remember when we started a family, our motorcycle rides became fewer and fewer. But I am drawing a blank as to the last time I rode it or even where we lived when I sold it. Maybe the trauma of retiring from motorcycle riding caused a mental block.
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Memory is really fascinating to me. I think what I can remember is accurate, except for the emotions I have about the memory – for example – if I was happy, I remember all the good bits, none of the bad bits. If I was scared, I remember all that provoked me and little else.
Since I have had major head injuries, I have had problems with my memory in the ten years or so before I was attacked. I remember a lot from my childhood and most of my teens. But it’s my mid/late twenties through to my early thirties where I am jumbled. I do remember some things and I remember some intense emotions. I have photos, some journals and thousands of e-mails that I either sent of received which I have been going through to help me.
However, I still seem to have blank memories. People who seem to be have been good friends of mine – I don’t know them, I don’t remember them – I upset a few people in the year after my attack, telling them I did not know who they were. My family felt the need to explain things to some of my friends because I think I was a bit blunt at times.
I had a memory that kept playing over and over in my head. I described it to my Dad this memory I have of sitting on a concrete step wearing a peach dress and some sandals and eating an ice-lolly that was melting all over me. It was a really hot day. I remember my brother taking me higher and higher up the steps. I wanted to be with my brother, he was always doing something exciting. I kept asking my Dad where that location was and eventually I drew for him. He told me it must have been the old stadium that was used by Bolton Wanderers Football Team. He said he was there the day I was born (I was not there that day) and two years later he took the whole family. The stadium was nowhere near full, and we were sitting in a fairly empty. That’s why we were sitting on the steps (people used to stand up for matches back then) and why my brother was running up and down the steps.
Dad was impressed I could remember a family day out when I was two years old.
Yet I can’t remember some of the people who send me beautiful e-mails about holidays we have been on and projects we have worked on. Nothing they say seems to bring back those memories.
I don’t know if they are still in my brain somewhere, and if they might come back at some point.
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That’s a nice memory, from when you were two, about being with your brother (and your whole family) at the stadium.
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It kept on coming back to me – which is why I asked my Dad if it was something he remembered. He remembered it well, but was amazed because I was such a little one at the time. It must be one of my earliest memories.
I was also around two or three when I remember being in the back of the car and someone hit me. I turned to my left and it was my little baby sister Mandy! That is my first memory of Mandy. Whereas Milly who was born when I was five years old – I remember Mum being pregnant and then going to see Mum in hospital the day Milly was born and being helped to hold Milly in my arms.
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😊
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It must be frustrating to have suffered an injury that wipes out all memories over a significant period of time. I can’t imagine that. Maybe, after a time, you’ll start to get snatches of those memories back.
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You just never know with WP. I did NOT send it twice. I edited it and it decided to REpost itself. Well, better than not at all!
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I was wondering about that. Well, no harm. Better twice than not at all, right?
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