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271 – Memories v2

Click the video above for several minutes of background waves while reading.

I like to walk on the beach. It is good for the mind, body, and soul – and refreshing on my feet. 

Memories are on my mind because I just finished the initial draft of the first essay. With many thoughts, a second essay is in order.

Every day in life, we do many things that are so routine and ingrained in our memory we automatically do them, such as taking a shower, using the microwave, walking, and countless other tasks. There must be a term, but I don’t know it. I also remember a math teacher saying that practicing problems trains your pencil so it moves when it sees a problem. Well stated, professor. 

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I think about something important in physical actions. To me, motor memory is about training movement to become automatic when needed. Highly tuned athletes repeatedly practice their physical routine so their motor memory automatically acts. When I played in a handbell choir, motor memory was necessary when switching bells, weaving, or transitioning between bells and chimes. Repeating the same actions in rehearsal should make them automatically happen. Sometimes, I also practiced on my own to engrain motor memory. 

When teaching anything physical, I think motor memory is important. No wonder coaches repeatedly practice plays. No wonder actors vigorously rehearse their lines. No wonder musicians practice over and over. No wonder conductors repeatedly rehearse difficult sections of music.  

I think about motor memory with ballroom dance. When learning a new pattern or sequence, repetition establishes motor memory. When dancing, the lead must think ahead while the follower must remain attentive to react to the unexpected. I must also remember to lead within my partner’s knowledge and skills. Then again, when the unexpected happens, either I did not execute the lead, or my partner misinterpreted the lead – and either one causes me to adjust my next move. 

Image from Masterclass.com

Long-term memories contain the information that makes you you—not just facts (like a capital city) or events – but also skills and processes like typing or dancing the Macarena. Long-term memory is durable yet changeable; a memory can evolve based on retelling a story or with new information learned after the event.

I wonder why I can remember various factoids while my wife doesn’t. She worries about someday finding me in a corner babbling as if I was downloading information from my volume of Wikipedia. I imagine there is a term for that memory, too. 

I think about my earliest memory. I can barely recall the first apartment my parents and I lived in, but I remember being in Italy at age 5 – including memories of people and places. I have tiny glimpses of memories on the ship – but not enough to tell a story. 

I picture my first-grade classroom in a school built in the 1800s and my teacher, Mrs. Bryant. I can still see the Individual milk drinks lined against the walk outside the classroom door – milk delivered daily for a lunch that we brought ourselves to eat in the classroom – but I can’t recall where I sat.

I think about the times we decide to go through things in storage – the stuff we saved for some reason. While going through a sorting that will end up with much (if not most) being trashed, the process will be slow because we relive the memories that objects trigger.

Thinking about memory takes me to my time as a teacher trying to convince high school students how to train their brains for learning – for easier recall. But I also know that the key to lesson development is creating something meaningful for learning because I now know that telling isn’t teaching. My teacher side knows if memory locks onto something incorrect, the lesson must also overcome that information so the student replaces it. Then again, that is not guaranteed because of a personal belief.

Memories can be engraved, etched, frozen, and refreshed, yet also hold to us in loving memory, in living memory, and in memory of those who are special to us. 

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It’s not that we have memories like an elephant, items can slip our memory – or be jogged or refreshed – but can a person with a photographic memory forget? Then again, some say that liars need good memories.

Memories are the thoughts etched into our hearts and minds that link us to our past and direct us into the future. Memories take us down memory lane. We know certain things by memory, and if my memory serves me correctly, we commit them to memory. Then again, sometimes we need a trigger to jog our memory. I’ve mentioned ROY G Biv in many essays, do you remember him? How about every good boy does fine in elementary school? 

Memories are an important part of being human – probably more than most people realize. Even after two essays, I sense there is much more to write about memories, but time will determine that. Then again, I also embed memories in many of the topical essays. After all, I like to walk on the beach. It’s good for the mind, body, and soul – and refreshing on my feet. 

I’m linking to Jo’s Monday Walk in Sevilla’s Palacio de Las Dueñas for its bountiful garden. Tell her I sent you.

See what other bloggers have posted about Memories

Next Post: Broken – Saturday 18 January @ 1:00 AM (Eastern US)

56 thoughts on “271 – Memories v2”

  2. Memory……we don’t think about that when we’re younger do we but when we age and have accumulated more memories we begin holding on tighter to them. As you know my Mom had Alzheimers and I have often wondered what – if any – memories “stayed” with her the longest before vanishing. This week I got my Dad’s old military footlocker out and began going through it to refresh my memories…..it was sad but rewarding in many ways. Funny how a “thing” can trigger so many thoughts. Like this post of yours did for me!

    Pam

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  3. I remember you were going to write another post on memory! 😉

    It’s amazing how many types of memory humans have–motor memory, short-term memory, long-term memories, memories unearthed with a whiff or a song. . .

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  5. I enjoyed your discussion on memories, Frank. It is a strange thing that once a person crosses that 80 year mark, memories become more important. I’m not sure if it is in gratitude that the brain still functions or a method to determine the quality of that life lived. Either has a benefit as you begin the preparations for the next adventure. All I know is, memories take on more of a central role than they did in the days of wine and roses. Well done on the post today.

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    1. John,

      Thanks for sharing your poignant view of memories. No question that age influences how we look at memories. I imagine during our “days of wine and roses” (as you called them – well done) – we lived more in the now, therefore less focused on the past and the future.

      This sentence also touched me: “’I’m not sure if it is in gratitude that the brain still functions or a method to determine the quality of that life lived. ” There is a lot in that sentence – therefore a powerful one to ponder. Thank you, oh wise one.

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  6. Hi Frank, some people have a very good memory and some don’t. I know from experience that I have an extraordinary memory and I can remember details of transactions I’ve worked on years and years ago including names of the advisors and which institution they were from. Generally, my colleagues don’t remember pieces of work we’ve done together like I do. My sisters don’t remember things from our childhood like I do – they don’t remember much at all. It really does depend on the person.

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    1. Robbie,

      There’s is no doubt that different people have different abilities associated with memory. After all, we don’t have to look further than siblings to see that. Cheers to your good memory. You sparked this question – Have you ever encountered a good memory being a curse?

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      1. That’s interesting. I think it can be. I’d like to forget watching my son stop breathing and need to be resuscitated and hubby having a grand mal seizure but I can’t. I recall the details vividly. On the whole though, it is a blessing.

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  7. Memories. Something that’s on my mind a lot these days Frank. Good, bad, clear, foggy, and non-existent. So far, my memory system is alive and well. That’s not to say I don’t forget things. My husband is a different story because dementia has moved in and taken over where his memory once lived. Kinda like those squatters who move into someone’s home, uninvited, and not even the law can remove them.

    As with so many things in our youth, we don’t appreciate our vibrant memory bank. We take it for granted like so many other things, that it will last, in tact, as long as we do. The older I get, the more important memory is to me.

    This was a great post. One that inevitably will touch everyone who reads it. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and for the great video.

    Ginger🦋

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    2. Ginger,

      I so much appreciate your way with words intertwined with your sense of humor. Cheers to that. I think your description of memory as “good, bad, clear, foggy, and non-existent” is true for all of us regardless of age. Like I mentioned to John, our younger selves probably lived more in the moment with less emphasis on the past and future. But, as we know, age has a way of shifting that. Meanwhile, your current life involves many aspects of memory – so peace and strength to you.

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  9. Excellent tune for this subject, Frank.

    I am amazed how I have been typing without looking at my keyboard since grade 9 (my school had obligatory typing class). And the funny thing is, don’t ask me where the letters are! I have to really think about it (or pretend to type).

    I also believe we remember the things that made an impression on us (which is why you remember some things that your wife does not – and certainly vice-versa).

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    1. Dale,

      Glad you enjoyed the song – one that actually strikes a positive memory for me. 🙂 Your keyboard example is example – yet quite a contradiction, too – which is why I appreciate it so much! Thank you!!!

      There’s no doubt that impression influences memory – as well as our personal perception. Yet, not all memories are created equal (that is from person to person).

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      1. That is a wonderful thing. Hahaha! Right!

        That is for sure. I don’t know if you ever watched New Amsterdam but the shrink on the show said he would never accept someone’s memory as truth because it becomes what we want it to be – and not maliciously. It is just the way it works.

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  10. Muscle memory is critical, isn’t it? When coaching high school volleyball many years ago, I would have my players visualize themselves perfectly doing a skill. Visualization actually creates pathways without physically completing the activity. Of course, visualizing the correct action/s is vital.

    I often wonder about things I remember from when I was quite young. Do I really remember all of them or have I internalized stories my parents or others told me about what happened? Does it really matter? My husband’s memories of things that happened in our family are sometimes so different from mine (or I don’t remember the incident/s at all), that I sometimes wonder whether we raised the same children. On the other hand, I had a lot of things around the house to remember as well as all the homeschooling work, so maybe it isn’t strange. I can quite often see an actor/actress and remember another movie or show s/he was in, while my husband can’t. Makes life interesting. 🙂

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    1. Janet,

      Thanks for sharing your personal experience about muscle memory as a volleyball coach. No matter the sport, I’m confident that all coaches practice with that concept in mind. There is no doubt that perception influences what we remember. No wonder different eye-witness reports aren’t the same. I imagine our individual reflection about past situations also influences memories. I like your question about “Does it really matter?” After all, what is done, is done. Yet, if we pass along a misconception about the story, well – that’s not reality – especially if we influence younger generations with that story.

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      1. My thought was that we may have a true memory or story, but did we remember it or did we internalize it as our own memory from something our parents or family told us? Of course, we should never pass on a deliberate misconception, but I think in most cases if there’s something not quite true about the story, it probably doesn’t matter.

        As an example of what I mean, I have a memory of my brother when he was little, going into my parents room in the morning and rocking in the rocking chair. Do I remember that as my own memory having seen it or do I “remember” it because my parents told us the story about it happening? It really wouldn’t matter because it happened. Does that make sense?

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  12. Q

    Memories are so strange sometimes too. They can appear randomly, and take you back to a time and place you didn’t know you really needed to remember! At least that’s how my brain seems to work.

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  13. I do think people tend to hold onto much stuff simply for the value it has in jogging memories. I like the few mementos I do have from childhood. But mostly I use written diaries to preserve my past.

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  14. Very thought provoking and I really do enjoy reading your beach walk reflections. Eilene I think is correct we do hold onto objects as they represent places, people and the memories associated with them. One thing Les laughed about once he knew his transplant had failed was that the concern of having dementia was no longer an issue. Got to laugh.

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    1. Suzanne,
      Thank you for the kind words. I’m happy that you found my cyberbeach. Cheers to a sense of humor during a difficult situation. I can see a good laugh. I once heard a person say that one of the benefits of Alzheimer’s was that they could hide their own Easter eggs. For me, I see a link between the joke and Les’ words. They aren’t mean – just a humorous way in light of a situation. Thanks for sharing.

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  16. Thank you Frank … Memories are so important.. They are after all, the only thing we take with us when we leave everything else behind here 🙂

    I always marvel at how you remember dance routines.. My granddaughter used to make my mind boggle, And her ballroom and Latin steps, 🙂
    Have had two in-laws both with dementia , the only thing which would bring my Mother-in-law to life was going back to her younger days when she lost a pair of red leather gloves. That would set a train of thought of other memories going… So we would start the conversation with.. Can you remember when you lost your gloves… and that would trigger more precious memories to return..

    Thank you Frank… Have a great weekend 🙂 xx

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    1. Sue,

      Glad you enjoyed this essay – and thanks for the kind words. I’m confident saying that I’ve probably forgotten more ballroom steps than I remember/use. Typically, in competitions and showcases, routines are memorized – yet things can go wrong. I recall one routine I did with a partner. I asked her what will you do if something goes astray – especially me forgetting something. So we practiced what ifs. The night of the showcase, I forgot two beats … that is a left and a right … which put us 2 beats ahead of the music. Good news is that I noticed it – and improvised two beats to get us back on track …. and nobody noticed! On the other hand, social dance is not choreographed – so it’s very freelanced.

      Triggers are important for everyone when it comes to memory. So, “Do you remember when” questions are good triggers. Thanks for sharing!

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      1. I am sure those two missed beats seemed like a huge error to you Frank… But those of us who are not in the know, would have seen you glide your partner perfectly around the room 🙂
        Have a great weekend Frank….

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        1. It was pre-covid and I still remember the error and where it happened on the floor. Interestingly, it was one that never occurred in all the practice sessions. Fortunately, we did practice what ifs. After missing the two beats, I noticed we were off the music a bit – and then realized where I missed the beats – then adjusted. It was seem less – and nobody noticed.

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  17. I can imagine that being in Italy at that young age would be profoundly memorable. And cool, I’d add. I don’t know “every good boy does fine” so I’ll ask what does it help you remember?

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    1. Ally,

      That time in Italy was profound. Foremost to me now is that it connected me to the area and my mother’s side of our family (grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins). I remain in contact with them … and I feel at home when I’m there.

      “Every good boy does fine” has to do with music. It’s the notes on the lines of treble cleft: E G B D F. “Face” identifies the notes in the spaces.

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