John Ray Week 14 - Not All Memories Stay

Why do some memories fade but others stay? 


I was thinking about this after I wrote my last blog when I talked about my memories of Bakersfield coming back. I thought about why I had certain memories of Bakersfield come back. Like remembering my time in the day care. I know I made a lot of memories in Bakersfield, so why did only a select few come back to me? 


I believe this is because of our natural human nature of remembering good memories. In Psychology, it is explained that happier memories are more likely to stay inside the memory, and worse memories will get repressed. So, when I went back to Bakersfield, all of my good memories came back instead of all of the boring and bad memories.  


With this clarity came even more questions. In my time living in Bakersfield, I was bound to have more than just a select few happy memories. So why did I only remember a few happy memories and not all? This is what makes memory such an interesting part of the human mind. It’s hard to maintain a lot of memories, but easy to lose a lot of memories. No matter how hard we try, we will always forget, it's a part of human nature. Some things in life we will forget about, no matter how hard we try to remember. We should all appreciate everything we have in the present. Our memory is unreliable, and our ability to forget is really easy. So, it’s best to cherish all the little things we have right now because we might not be able to recall them in the future.

Fading Memories
Source: https://www.pastest.com/blog/medical-revision/4-facts-you-should-know-about-memory-recall/

Comments

  1. Phyo KyawApril 17, 2024 at 8:19 AM

    Hi John, I think it's a pretty interesting concept to think about. I always wondered why I remember random NBA players but I can't remember my chemical formulas. I do agree that we tend to remember things that make us happy or pique our interest. However, we also remember the worst of memories. I believe that us humans tend to remember the things that are influential either negatively or positively. I just wish chemical formulas were influential to me so I could actually remember them. As I write this comment, I will probably forget what I wrote by the end of today. A couple years from now, I might forget we had Blogs altogether. I might even forget people in this class altogether. Overall, your blog was great to read and refreshing.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Rushil MantriApril 17, 2024 at 8:38 PM

    I like how you explore various topics that connect to your previous blogs. Not only did I find your latest blog to be very insightful, but the connection it held to the previous one made it much stronger. While I was researching for my blog, I found results similar to yours. You’re right, memory is very intriguing. It is said that worse memories are more likely to be repressed, and vice versa. However, some good memories are hard to remember as well. I often find myself feeling nostalgic remembering “the good times,” wondering why I couldn’t recollect them before. The stimulus you provided was also a great tangible metaphor for how psychology works. The brain is like a puzzle, and sometimes some pieces go missing. Certain pieces are different colors, offering different feelings for each person. Overall, I liked how your blog was structured. From its connection to your previous blog, it went a step further; you are showing great improvement in creative writing.

    ReplyDelete

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