John Ray Week 15 - Lost Memories

 My first ever memory was waking up for preschool when I was three years old. Or at least I think it was because I have little memories of when I was a little baby and toddler, and this is normal. Humans don’t start developing memories until they are about three years old. 


This had me thinking: What was life like when I was a baby? I may never truly know the answer. The only answer I can get is through my parents telling me what I was like when I was a baby; apparently I never cried. My crying was so rare that my parents thought that there was something wrong with me, but according to the doctors I was healthy. But this doesn’t help me really picture what life was like back then. 


This also makes me think about what possible events could have taken place when I was a baby that I would not be able to recall. For example, I remember my parents saying they took me to Disneyland when I was 2, and I have zero recollection of that day. I wonder what my little 2 year old self would have possibly thought of Disneyland. I wonder if Disneyland was different back in 2009. 


However, with these longings to regain the memories I couldn’t form when I was baby, comes the realization that I have 14 years of memories. Those 3 years of lost memories get instantly made up by the numerous memories I have created after those years. So while it would be nice to have the memories I made as a baby, the memories I created after those years are by far more important.

Graph showing formation of memory
Image from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reminiscence_bump

Comments

  1. Anna PaulApril 29, 2024 at 7:48 PM

    Hey John Ray! I liked how your blog dives into your personal memories from childhood. From what my parents told me, I was a particularly good child who would not make a bunch of noise or cry as much as the other kids. I can agree with you that I can barely remember much from my toddler years and I would constantly ask my parents about it. If I remember correctly, there was another blog that went over this similar idea of past memories. My blog for this week had also followed a similar idea as yours. Forgetting. I wrote about how it can be used as an ally or an enemy and your blog talks about how it impacted your memories. From my research, it could be just your brain organizing your memories and choosing some that should be forgotten. Some of these memories that are forgotten can tend to show no significance in later life which can possibly explain why we tend to not remember our young childhood as much since it does not really impact us today. In my view, we change as time goes on. There was even a idea that we become different people every four years. So if we were to compare ourselves from 7th grade to now, we are completely different. Anyways, forgetting and memory play hand-in-hand in developing us and our lives.Thank you for your blog!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Phyo KyawMay 1, 2024 at 9:55 AM

    John, your blog was very thoughtful and tickled my brain. I wish I could remember all my memories from when I was a baby. This made me think about how babies think. Like, do they have a thought process? What do they see? Do they process things like we do now? Their brains are less developed so how do they process things? I've always wondered this. My earliest memories are from when I was 4 years old. Even then, the memories are very faint. I don't remember much of my early childhood, only when I was in preschool do I remember specific things. I think school is actually good in helping our brains develop and serving as significant childhood memories. Memories are sentimental and nostalgic. I miss when my biggest worry was being the first to the swings at the playground. I think photos also help maintain memories. They serve as a reminder of what once was. Overall, I loved your blog and how much it made me reminisce about my past.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Rushil MantriMay 1, 2024 at 12:48 PM

    I liked your choice of topic for this blog. While it maintains the topic of memory, it also brings up a universal experience for everyone. I always thought about what my life was like when I was a baby. For some reason, I cannot seem to remember. I see it as a developing stage, where our conscience does not exist. Until now, I did not have an understanding as to why that is. The stimulus you provided helped me realize how our memory truly works. However, you could have gone much more in-depth in your explanation. Memory is very complicated, and there are many facts that you could have presented to talk about your topic. If you had presented more facts from credible sources, you would have been able to construct a stronger ethos, and therefore a better blog. Topics like these require more thought, which is what you have, but you choose not to write it all out.

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