Thanks for the Memory

What Do You Remember?         

          You know how I love books. I think of the brain as the Library of Congress. How much information we encounter every day of our lives is overwhelming. There’s no way to really know all that you know. Conversely, there’s a ton of stuff we can’t seem to remember. I’m sure I’ve forgotten a library’s worth of information, be it important, entertaining or nostalgic. Why is it we can remember where we were the first time we heard the song Louie Louie but we can’t remember what we had for lunch yesterday? Or why can’t I remember the safe place I put that thing I wanted to be sure not to lose?

          There is a significant amount of scientific data as to why we have trouble remembering stuff, but, in my opinion, it’s pretty boring data. I guarantee there are several easy and fun ways to improve your ability to routinely remember more than you currently do, regardless of whether you’re a senior citizen or younger, and I'll share a few of those in a moment.

Woo Woo Questions

          Besides the practical, there are a couple of ‘woo woo’ things to consider first. To me ‘woo woo’ means touchy feely or sort of psychological things that might impact our ability to remember something.

          The first thing is having the right attitude. Do you really want to remember? A friend of mine needed some help learning something on his computer but he’d repeatedly have to be shown how to do what he needed to accomplish. He was frustrated and, as it turns out, any work with a computer made him feel unqualified and not capable of doing the simplest of tasks. He kept throwing his hands up in despair and opted for a different, less electronic way to accomplish his task. While he felt he couldn’t remember what I’d shown him, in truth, he didn’t see the value of doing this task on the computer to begin with. So, be sure to ask yourself: How important is it for me to remember this? And, do I really want to remember this?

          The second woo woo question I ask is: Who is telling me to remember? If it’s a grouchy spouse or the ghost of a cranky teacher or parent, there is a good chance you won’t let whatever it is really sink in enough to remember it in the future. However, the opposite might be true as well: the experience may have been so unpleasant you’ll never forget it! I’m sure you’ll be able to tell the difference.