Memory

Photo credit: tracitodd; Flickr.com

quote credit: Kevin Arnold

"Memory is a way of holding on to the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose."

I apologize for the month long break from this blog to anyone who reads it! I was taking a small vacation from school work of any kind to rejuvenate my brain, but I am back for a little while!

I've been on a memory kick lately; strolling down memory lane with friends from Grade school and sharing memories to talking with family about people whom we loved and those that have passed.  This quote hits homes, and the picture definitely supports it.

Even though the picture appears to be a tree in the autumn season, this quote brings me to summer.  Now this could be due to the fact that we're on the brink of summer and I'm anticipating it being a blast, but summer seems to be the time when everyone makes the most memories, whether they be fond or terrible is up to your discretion.  

But stop and think about it for a second, how many of you would absolutely love to have a photographic memory to capture every moment in time that has ever meant something to you?  I wish my brain was a camera, that way I would never have to worry about my memories withering.  

Why do we keep things in our memories?  Is it because we don't want to lose them? But that explanation doesn't really explain why we keep bad memories as well.  So what is it about bad memories that makes us remember them?  Is it the vivid detail, is it the intense emotion that might have accompanied it?  Lots of questions and no answers.

Good memories are usually also paired with emotions that can be intense, or little.  They really are things that we want to hold onto.  I would love to hold onto the person I was as a child, because it has gotten me this far, even though I am no longer quite the person I used to be.  We hold memories of people we don't want to lose.  Those that have passed on remain alive in our memories, or so I'm told.  All the great times you shared with them all remain in your memory.

Your own personal scrap book that only you can see, but you can share at times with others.  Memory is a beautiful thing.  Even if it holds regrets, it's a beautiful concept to consider.  The brain is capable of so many things, and this one little aspect is such a large part of our lives.  For example, this week is Civil War week on the history channel.  Everyone wanted to document the memories of those that were left alive at the end of the war for future generations to learn.  Why? Most of the memories were not pleasant and it was a dark time in the history of America.

They wanted to preserve these memories because they tell a story.  They teach the world lessons about war and what happens when a nation tears itself apart and turns against one another.  Memories aren't just there to make you smile, they teach you things as well.  You learn from your mistakes, because you remember what you did and that it didn't work.

Memory is such an important part of our lives and we don't even realize it. Half the time, we take it for granted.

The picture represents memory in the sense of beauty.  For example, we would remember walking through a park or taking a stroll around campus during the fall. Why? Because of all the colors.  The sky is so blue, and the tree is so orange; not only would those facts make you remember what a lovely day it must have been, but you'd remember the season, and you'd probably associate positive emotions with it. Color psychology plays an important role in memory as well.

I hope this was a little insight for you to start brainstorming for yourself about what memory has done for you.