Memories Like Snapshots of Time

Ever notice how early childhood memories are like snap shots of random events? I was reminded of one this morning when I found out a childhood friend may be visiting. One of my earliest memories is this image of us playing with matchbox cars in their driveway. That’s all, just my friend, his brother and I, sitting in the dust and gravel, playing with the cars. I can smell the dust and feel the summer sun. I know we were laughing. I must have been around 4 years old.

Everything else about that visit is a mystery. We lived in different states, so our families didn’t see each other often. I have no idea why we were there, or what else happened. Just that one image. My greater knowledge as an adult can fill in some of those blanks, but the child remembered only those things.

Children capture the essence of life in those snapshot images. They seem distilled to remove unnecessary data. As adults, we rarely remember things so unencumbered with irrelevancies. In thinking about it, I realized the only times I have even come close, as an adult, were in highly emotional times, such as when my father died and I was in a grief induced fog most of the time for several days. Some were from joyful, but hectic, times.

Could it be that, during those unfocused or hectic periods, our distraction occasionally frees the gift we had as children to grasp those essential images? What are we missing because we spend too much time focused on irrelevancies? Does it really matter what Mary Smith wore to the picnic Saturday, or who won the World Series? Isn’t the important part that you saw Mary Smith and had a great time, or the smile on you child’s face when someone hit a home run? Aren’t those the images we should file away in our memories?

So, what are your favorite or earliest snapshots?