On memory...

Who are these people? Their names are noted on the back of the photo, but the memory of them is gone. 

After my recent essay about personal history, today two interesting posts came across my Facebook feed that expand a little more on the subject -- specifically, the concept of memory.

The first is an essay by film critic Roger Ebert, "I Remember You."  At a funeral for his cousin, a slide show was shown of old family photos. A one particular photo passed by, it suddenly occurred to him:

I think there's a chance I was the only person in the room who knew it was Uncle Ben in the second row. There were probably a dozen who knew in general who the picture showed--ancestors on the mother's side--but does the name or an idea of Uncle Ben linger on earth outside my own mind? When I die, what will remain of him? 


Memory. It makes us human. It creates our ideas of family, history, love, friendship. Within all our minds is a narrative of our own lives and all the people who were important to us. Who were eyewitnesses to the same times and events. Who could describe us to a stranger.

The second post was about the Music & Memory Project, "a non-profit organization that brings personalized music into the lives of the elderly or infirm through digital music technology, vastly improving quality of life." In this video, two nursing home patients, Gil and Denise, are literally transformed by hearing their favorite music again.

Consider how your favorite music moves you today, and what it would be like to no longer be able to hear it. It's startling to contemplate.

Without our five senses being engaged on a daily basis, of course the mind falls idle. Our memories of the people, the places and the events in our lives begin to slip away... and unless they are shared, they will be gone forever one day.