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I have rather poor childhood memories - I remember only a very few scattered scenes before about age 13. But I know exactly what my earliest memory was, probab

by mcherm 13y ago

I have rather poor childhood memories - I remember only a very few scattered scenes before about age 13. But I know exactly what my earliest memory was, probably because it was such a significant occasion. I was 3 years old and I remember being in the house and watching my mom come home. She'd been gone for a day or so and when she came back she had this new baby with her (my brother). I specifically remember her walking into the house: I was behind the sofa peering up at her as she walked in the door, and she had the baby. I was mostly just glad to have my mom back. Touching tale, here's where it gets interesting. I remember that, but later (over 30 years later) I discussed this with my parents. Turns out, I'd been left at a neighbor's house while my dad went to fetch her home. They got me afterward. I wasn't THERE to see her walk in. I'm not trying to suggest that your memories are not real. But memory is a strange thing. They do not work like photographs or audio recordings; instead memories are laid down in nerve connections and are refreshed by running through them again. It's sort of like having VHS tapes that are brittle: you keep the data by copying them over and over again. Having a photograph to refer to helps to cement it; having a story that goes with it helps you to repeat and thus remember it, and this can happen regardless (as in my case) of whether there was an accurate original "memory". So perhaps that is the source of your history professor's skepticism. Now, he is simply flat-out wrong to dismiss your claims out-of-hand. There is significant individual variation in early memories -- and there ARE some people who have memories from age 2 or 3. But the nature of memory itself is such that such having an early memory like that may not mean exactly what you think it means.

jtheory 13y ago
To be fair, your memory could be only slightly altered over time -- e.g., your dad fetched you home from the neighbors, told you to wait in the living room, and brought your mother (and baby down) from upstairs, so only the bit about the door was off. It's also possible that your parents' memory is off. :) Not that I'm disagreeing with your main points -- memories are subject to a strange game of telephone over the years. My own early childhood memories (all of childhood, really, and much of post-childhood as well) are pretty limited; I was under general anesthesia more than most kids (more than 5 times; less than 50; I can't remember), which apparently messes with memory. By contrast my wife has abundant and clear memories of much of her life, including early childhood; she's a writer. I'm sure her memories are reworked as much as anyone's, and inaccuracies are introduced; but the raw material is so obviously greater than what I have in my own head. Related tangent: she wrote a piece about navigating the unreliability of memory a couple of years ago: http://www.michiganquarterlyreview.com/2012/01/blue/ http://www.michiganquarterlyreview.com/2012/01/blue/
- mcherm 13y ago
  > To be fair, your memory could be only slightly altered over time [...] It's also possible that your parents' memory is off. Absolutely. In fact, I find it extremely interesting, in a philosophical sense, the implication that perhaps nothing we remember can be considered reliable. But in this case 3 years old is quite young for an early memory and it is clear from other evidence that I have particularly poor memory for events (late age for most childhood memories, poor memories of events and conversations even today). So the most likely explanation is that my own memory is fabricated. Interestingly, that doesn't change the fact that I can still remember it! > my wife has abundant and clear memories of much of her life [...] she's a writer It is certainly a thing which varies strongly in different people. I am reminded of an author (I think it was Beaverly Cleary) being interviewed and mentioning that she had strong memories of her early childhood -- and that this was the source of much of her excellent writing. > she wrote a piece about navigating the unreliability of memory I read it. Wow... she's a great writer! Please pass on that I said so. I thought the pacing of that piece and the way it draws the reader in at the beginning were really wonderful. It is so difficult to write about racial issues in a way that is open to and accessible to readers from all races, but this piece managed that.

by mcherm 13y ago

jtheory 13y ago

To be fair, your memory could be only slightly altered over time -- e.g., your dad fetched you home from the neighbors, told you to wait in the living room, and brought your mother (and baby down) from upstairs, so only the bit about the door was off. It's also possible that your parents' memory is off. :) Not that I'm disagreeing with your main points -- memories are subject to a strange game of telephone over the years. My own early childhood memories (all of childhood, really, and much of post-childhood as well) are pretty limited; I was under general anesthesia more than most kids (more than 5 times; less than 50; I can't remember), which apparently messes with memory. By contrast my wife has abundant and clear memories of much of her life, including early childhood; she's a writer. I'm sure her memories are reworked as much as anyone's, and inaccuracies are introduced; but the raw material is so obviously greater than what I have in my own head. Related tangent: she wrote a piece about navigating the unreliability of memory a couple of years ago: http://www.michiganquarterlyreview.com/2012/01/blue/ http://www.michiganquarterlyreview.com/2012/01/blue/

mcherm 13y ago
> To be fair, your memory could be only slightly altered over time [...] It's also possible that your parents' memory is off. Absolutely. In fact, I find it extremely interesting, in a philosophical sense, the implication that perhaps nothing we remember can be considered reliable. But in this case 3 years old is quite young for an early memory and it is clear from other evidence that I have particularly poor memory for events (late age for most childhood memories, poor memories of events and conversations even today). So the most likely explanation is that my own memory is fabricated. Interestingly, that doesn't change the fact that I can still remember it! > my wife has abundant and clear memories of much of her life [...] she's a writer It is certainly a thing which varies strongly in different people. I am reminded of an author (I think it was Beaverly Cleary) being interviewed and mentioning that she had strong memories of her early childhood -- and that this was the source of much of her excellent writing. > she wrote a piece about navigating the unreliability of memory I read it. Wow... she's a great writer! Please pass on that I said so. I thought the pacing of that piece and the way it draws the reader in at the beginning were really wonderful. It is so difficult to write about racial issues in a way that is open to and accessible to readers from all races, but this piece managed that.