Friday, December 10, 2010

Flashdrives of flashbacks

Memory is a very strange thing. At times we are delighted to be reminded of something in our past and at times it leaves us unpleasant. But what is thrilling is how we store this memory. I am not talking about pictures, photographs or videos here. Those are unreal, without feeling, without emotion and they are not lasting no matter how hard you try to preserve them. I am talking about those tiny little memories packed up in some senses. Few days back a chocolate ice-cream with mint sauce took me back to the day I licked out choco-mint creme from a biscuit. I was 10 maybe. I had comfortably forgotten it. But that day the smile didn't leave my face. I was so happy to have reconnected with a tiny insignificant part of my childhood. Similarly today a spoonful of milk powder melted on my tongue and I gleed with joy and felt like a child. What amazes me is not the memory. It is the way I remember it. Now if I think hard I can actually remember particular scents. A favorite teacher's saree. Or the smell of my mom's cupboard when I could comfortably hide there and be untraced when we played hide and seek.  A unique voice. A funny manner in which someone walked. The way someone gestured. The way someone smiled. A similar sight, taste, sound , smell and touch can unlock a whole new world from our past. Lot of it stored unconsciously. Insignificant things surfacing in the present but bringing back the same old feelings effortlessly and unknowingly. It is a pure delight. Most of these memories are not connected with joy or sadness. There are just those grey areas you never make an effort to remember for years. No value as such. But its sudden recollection that slips through some sensory detection- marvellous and miraculous. So if we actually understand this brilliance our flashbacks are stored in the flashdrives called senses.

5 comments:

Vijitha said...

Absolutely. We're all very "sensational" beings.

And I've felt exactly the same way about many of my childhood memories. Funny thing is, I can't even begin to express what they are, nor what they mean to me, in words. :-)

And I believe that of all the flashbacks, the ones during our childhood are the MOST vivid!

Well-written Sam!

Adam said...

i agree.. Some memories make a mark without our knowledge and we recall them with a totally random incident, including details like smell.. :) I recall the way our house smelled back when i was a kid and remember it when I visit some places.. Great post.. Nice work Sam..

S. Susan Deborah said...

You seem to be a sense person like me. Anything that connects to the senses eggs me on and this post appealed to me in different ways. I am also very similar to you when it comes to smell, taste, touch, sight and audio. Isn't it wonderful that our small mind can store so many things. So much in awe and still exploring.

A lovely post, Sameera.

Joy always,
Susan

Yuvika said...

Cudn;t agree more - memories of what your felt, smelt, heard, come back sometimes without an apparent reason - but leave u feeling fuzzy...

Sukanya said...

A big nod to this post. This has happened so many times to me. Sometimes, for no reason, I just go back in time and remember and relive those frozen moments. And I did that again today after reading your post :)

Cheers,
Sukanya

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...