How many of us take the time to introspect on bygone times – take a walk down their memory lane? I’m sure this happens once in a while to all of us. Something just triggers a targeted memory-read action of some deeply embedded cluster of neurons. It could be a person, a smell, a sound, a song/melody, a flash of color, a situation – anything with the ability to trigger the recall. When such a forgotten memory file is accessed, it may cause unexpected feelings of happiness, sadness, fear, concern, etc.…. all based on what memory images have been accessed and are visible on your mental screen – your virtual reality. You may describe this recalled memory to others, but the accompanying feelings are yours only, to experience.

My reference in this article is not to such random, unplanned trigger events; but to a concerted attempt by you – to take some quiet time off and take a walk down your memory lane. Everyone, even siblings who have grown up together, have their own unique memory lane. We have stored in our memory banks as we grow up, our own perceptions of the reality around us. What we wanted to believe, as we saw it and experienced it. Surely, a lot of our experiences were in the short-term ‘scratch-pad memory area’ and were never stored, for whatever reason. All of us have banks and banks of ROM (read-only) memory – which create our personality and who we are. They define our values, and likes/dislikes and dictate how we deal with the world around us. I have found, during such walks down my memory lane that the path is filled with some crystal clear markers and other fuzzy and unclear indicators, that I probably want to forget.

Try this exercise. Get into a relaxed state of mind and go ‘fast-backward’ to your earliest childhood memories. Go as far back as you can recollect. Visualize the first memories of your home, where you grew up. How you remember your parents and siblings and try to associate with them, the feelings from that time period, as these images float through your mind. ‘Slow-forward’ up your memory lane and try to recollect the deeply embedded memories that you have cherished as you grew up. You will have both pleasant and unpleasant recollections. My earliest memories I could regress in time to, was when I was a child, 2-3 years old. I remember being very unhappy when someone wanted to take my photograph with a camera. As I grew older, my parents told me that I feared, that I would disappear into the camera picture, and probably was terrified as a 3-year-old. I guess I outgrew that fear at some point in time. I also recollect that the home where I grew up was my ‘safe place’, where I could not be harmed by anything. My parents and siblings were always there for me.

Without a time machine, I have traversed back and forth my early childhood, my teenage years, my school life, my 5-years at IIT KGP, early marriage years as we started our own family, work life spanning over 45 years, and 10+ organizations. I recollect relationships (good and bad), savor some fine memories of bygone days, and at the end of it all, feel re-vitalized and look forward to my time ahead of me. I remembered the various crossroads, where I had to make crucial decisions on the next step to take. Clearly, in a multiverse world (vs our universe), there may be multiple Ibi’s out there who took the other fork-paths (that I did not) and may be living a completely different life. I do not regret any of my choices and do not play any what-if games.

As we grow up, unfortunately, we tend to leave behind these memories as ‘past/old’ baggage and we want to move on. Such flashbacks will clearly help re-vitalize past relationships within the core and extended family units

I believe we have a lot to learn from our memories. We often hear folks saying – “Forget the past (that time has gone) and look to the future”. I do not endorse this completely. I agree that one should not keep musing over past events which you cannot change now…. In this case, moving on is the best option. But one must never forget their past. Everyone’s present and future are built over the foundation of one’s past. Learning from past mistakes is one of the best ways to not repeat them again.

This is one travel trip, where you do not need a flight ticket or hotel bookings. All you need to do is find a relaxing armchair, a glass of your favorite beverage, and some quiet time. It is your life to muse and ponder over.

Best case, you will go through some strong positive memoirs and of course some negative ones (that you want to forget) – which may explain a lot of things in your current timeline. We can learn from both these cases as we move on.

Worst case, you have trouble accessing past memories. At least, you will go through a ‘cobweb cleaning’ exercise of the millions of neuron paths in your brain and hopefully be able to recollect some valuable experiences. Never forget your past……It is the foundation of our existence.