How to make more memories.
I’ve just returned home from seven weeks away with my wife, Kaitlin, and my two boys, Finn (6) and Atlas (3).
Before, during, and after the trip I’d guess at least a dozen people made a point to mention the memories that we were making as a family. At first, I agreed with Winnie the Pooh, who once said:
“We didn’t realise we were making memories; we just knew we were having fun.”
Curious about which memories we made together, I ran a little experiment last night and asked Kaitlin and Finn to privately write a list of their top ten memories from the trip. I did it too. (Atlas was a little young to participate, but he fondly reminisced about gelato and cats.)
Comparing our lists, a couple of interesting things popped up.
Light plays a significant role in many of our memories. We all went out of our way to detail how we remembered something happening at sunset, after dark, or in the morning. I don’t know what to make of that yet.
A few of our memories overlapped. We all remember Finn dressed in a tuxedo, walking alongside Lake Como, hand in hand with Kaitlin in a red dress (the sun was glistening on the water). That one I knew I’d remember forever - it was like I was having nostalgia for the present. Finn and my date to see Michaelangelo’s David in Florence made our top ten. But plenty of the memories didn’t overlap, meaning we each took some special moments, but they were just for us.
So, what have I learned about making memories?
We don’t make as many memories in everyday life (all those taco Tuesdays and Netflix shows quickly fade), so those dozen or so people were right.
However, moving away from the normal, as you do when you travel, creates far more possible memories.
You need to accept that many of those possible memories will be forgotten. And that’s OK.
But some of those memories will stick, maybe for your whole life (particularly it seems, if the light is right).
I’m pretty sure that the memory of walking up the steps of the Acropolis with Atlas on my shoulders (according to the myth, it should be the other way around) at 6:30 on a hot Athens night and then feeling the cool wind on the summit will stick with me forever.
Think back to the last great trip you took, and write down a memory that you think might stick with you for the rest of your life. If it feels nice to share, write one in the comments, I’d love to read about it.