Have you ever noticed how soon we 'forget' things we're used to seeing every day once they're no longer part of our daily experience? Not that they disappear from our memories completely, but when they're out of sight, they tend also to be out of mind - until that is, something (a photo, an aroma, a word, etc.) reminds us of them - or we see them again. So "What exactly are you talking about?" you may be wondering.
Well, as I sit here typing this, I'm also casting my gaze around the room and seeing little bumps or indentations in the ceiling which have been there for as long as I can recall. Yet, 43 years ago, when myself and my family moved to another house, I pretty soon (if not immediately) 'forgot' all about them, even though they'd been a familiar part of my life on a day-to-day basis for 11 years. Not that they were constantly at the forefront of my thoughts or consciousness, but I was aware of them on a subliminal level at least.
Then, when we moved back to this house after four years, upon seeing certain things again, I immediately 'remembered' them (or perhaps 'was reminded' of them is a better description). For example, when we first moved into this house in 1972, there was a long crack in the plaster of the ceiling in a corner of the room I'm now in, which had been caused be the weight of the water tank in the attic above. The previous tenants hadn't fixed it, we hadn't repaired it, and the subsequent tenants hadn't seen to it either. It wasn't until 2017 (around 30 years after we'd moved back) I finally attended to it, and all that needs to be done now is for me to paint the ceiling for the former blemish to be totally invisible.
Also, when we resided here the first time, my brother affixed his heavy metal posters to the wall with a stapler. When I was papering the room a number of years ago (a mammoth undertaking that took me many months, a bit at a time), I noticed quite a few of the staples still remained in the wall. I could have removed them, but decided to leave them where they were and simply papered over them. (I actually tapped them into the wall for a closer fit, so they wouldn't protrude through the new wallpaper.) The thought these staples may well remain there forever to mark our first stay in the house appeals to me in some strange way.
As I've said before somewhere, not thinking about something is not quite the same as forgetting it, but the result is similar - it's like forgetting. However, all we need is a trigger for a particular memory to burst forth anew, as if it had been hiding behind a tree and suddenly jumped out in front of us, shouting "Hi, remember me?" - and we do.
So let me ask you - have you 'remembered' something recently you thought you'd forgotten until you remembered it? If you can understand that, feel free to tell your fellow Crivs all about it.
Also, when we resided here the first time, my brother affixed his heavy metal posters to the wall with a stapler. When I was papering the room a number of years ago (a mammoth undertaking that took me many months, a bit at a time), I noticed quite a few of the staples still remained in the wall. I could have removed them, but decided to leave them where they were and simply papered over them. (I actually tapped them into the wall for a closer fit, so they wouldn't protrude through the new wallpaper.) The thought these staples may well remain there forever to mark our first stay in the house appeals to me in some strange way.
As I've said before somewhere, not thinking about something is not quite the same as forgetting it, but the result is similar - it's like forgetting. However, all we need is a trigger for a particular memory to burst forth anew, as if it had been hiding behind a tree and suddenly jumped out in front of us, shouting "Hi, remember me?" - and we do.
So let me ask you - have you 'remembered' something recently you thought you'd forgotten until you remembered it? If you can understand that, feel free to tell your fellow Crivs all about it.