Memory And Me

When asked, the majority of people describe their real self as abiding or existing either in the mind or as consciousness in and out of the mind. Sounds complicated at first blush, but if you think about it for a minute, all of us think of ourselves, our identity if you will, as somewhere in our head. Our consciousness is who we are, at least for most. As such, our personality, our memories and everything else that is who we are, is a heady matter, pun intended. So what happens if one loses their ability to think or much of their memories? Who are they then to themselves?

I was asked to review a book titled, “A Matter of Panache,” by the author, Debra Sanders. The book retells the story of a woman who lost much of her memory and ability to think as a result of head injuries suffered in an automobile accident. It’s a great read and it set me to thinking. There is a part in the book where Debra informs the reader that she had to speak to people she once had relationships with just to ask them what happened.

Imagine that you remember a relationship with some significant other but your memory leaves off years before the relationship ended—years before. In fact, your memory leaves off following a wonderful and loving exchange between the two of you. Imagine having to ask what happened and somehow getting your feelings to square with your head. Who are we if we wake up one morning and know little of our selves?

Our memory, our time line, is who we are—or is it? I know who I am in part because I know what I did to get where I am. I know where I went to school, who my friends were, where I work, who my significant others are and so forth. I know my dog’s name and his peculiar crying sounds when I leave him unattended in the car. I know my favorite music, movies, television shows and on and on and on. So, I think I know something about me.

I could add that I also know of experiences that attest to a life after death, Divine intervention and more. I know also about the dark. So I think I know a little more about myself including the vast amount that I simply don’t have a clue about—can’t even take an educated guess over. So what then if suddenly I have no memory, no yesterday or last night, like I went to bed around ten pm and here I am?

Imagine waking up in a strange place to a stranger—yourself. You don’t even know until you try whether you are right or left handed. In fact, it takes little more to imagine not even knowing what handedness is. Just a bit more imagination and we could wake up without a memory of everything we have learned including our language. Now what do we have?

I’m sure you have just realized what we have is essentially a newborn only perhaps one that is 6 foot tall and more than a few minutes old. That in and of itself is worthy of some thought for it is an intriguing idea to think of memory as our identification. What if when we are born there is some mechanism, like the veil so many spiritual teachers speak of, that starts memory all over?

Back to the original point, who am I if I have no memory of who I am? Is memory critical to our being? The answer is obviously no for many people have experienced amnesia, partial and otherwise, throughout history, and they were all ‘being’. Then is memory more like an anchor that keeps us from moving into new ways of being? I remember, for example, that public speaking can make me very nervous, so I avoid much of it. What if I did not remember any so-called self-imposed limitation?

What if in losing my memory I gained the ability to experience and learn all over and in doing so I never experienced the same failures or fears? Would I still be the same person? The answer again is probably not. What then is who I am if not my memories? And if this is who I am, can I selectively change the memories I choose? After all, I want only positive reinforcing memories that encourage me to succeed at everything I enjoy or love. Isn’t this the exact thing we want for our children?

Somehow I sense, even know in a Noetic way, that the me that is me is still there even if I don’t remember who I be. What I also somehow know is that within each of us is the ability to rewrite memory in favorable ways. Ways that empower us to improve and to reach new vistas in our search for meaning and exploration of life. Indeed, our InnerTalk technology was designed with just this purpose in mind.

I am convinced that if we forget about ourselves, our past, and instead turn our thoughts to others, real insight into who we are and what we are made to do becomes obvious. For in aiding others, we experience a neuro-chemical reward (apparently we were wired from the factory this way) and that quintessential sense I just call the “warm fuzzy feeling” in my book, Choices and Illusions. It is almost as if we are factory built for service to our fellow human being and that in freely providing that service we find we are actually rewarded with all of those good neuro chemicals that make us feel happy.

It’s the Holiday Season and we celebrate at this time of year the real miracle of life. ‘Tis the time to be happy and give good cheer! May you truly smile from deep within and know the joy that is your birthright!

Thanks for the read.

Eldon

P.S. Readers from around the country have told me how helpful Choices and Illusions was to them. This is what one person sent me just last week, “I recently purchased your Choices and Illusions. Little did I realize how "mind altering" the information you shared would be in my life. "Choices and Illusions" was there, just when I needed clarification!”

Here is a link that contains some truly wonderful additional incentives when you get a copy of Choices and Illusions and as it costs under $15, you can’t go wrong: http://progressiveawarenesspromotions.com/hayhousepromo/092008/