Monday, April 29, 2013

Writing From The Past -- On Second Thought

After writing my last post about revisiting the past through photographs, friends, and travel, I was lying in bed and thinking about some incidents in my life (probably the best time for those things to happen before drifting off to sleep) and it occurred to me that one of the best ways is to look within oneself.   

While those other suggestions from Ray Bradbury are wonderful prompts for virtual time travel, layers of memories that we can unfold through thought may be the most meaningful.

For me, thinking about certain things almost brings back to life what I felt, smelled, heard, and saw on specific occasions. And the more thought I put into it, the more it unfolds in my psyche.

I suppose this could almost be a self-analysis. It can be painful, joyful or simply a 3D snapshot to observe something from the distance of time.

It’s important to write down your thoughts before they slip out of sight and out of mind. I would guess that most of us probably tend to procrastinate (and that includes yours truly), believing we can remember to do it later, but only to discover that we forgot to record what we wanted to recall from our past. I have the additional handicap of senior moments.

Don’t feel you have to write the entire episode. Jot down the highlights and review them to keep them somewhat fresh in your mind.

Any thoughts?

Until the next time…

2 comments:

  1. Oh, how I wish I could will myself to jot down some highlights during the week, but, of course, I also depend on my aging memories. I think I procrastinate procrastination!

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  2. Sandie, I'm probably as guilty as most people in not writing down story ideas. Another problem I have when I do remember to do it is when I forget where I put it after I wrote it.

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