Life
Middle-aged people trying to hold onto time
Memory is no longer fragmented, and from now on has continuity
The author has kept a daily diary for over 1,200 days, initially to combat the blurriness of repetitive routines and fading memories. The diary helps retain personal historical details, serving as an index for retrieving fragmented memories and even dreams. It enriches life by preserving daily experiences, preventing them from slipping away unnoticed. The author recommends diary-keeping to others.
- #memory preservation
- #historical details
- #personal perspective
- #dream recording
38
Unknowingly, I have been keeping a daily diary for over 1,200 days.
It doesn't take much effort; I just jot down what I did and what I ate each day, purely a chronological record.
The reason I started keeping a diary was that after working for several years, I looked back at the past few years and found that my memories were no longer continuous.
It might be the repetitive work day after day or the unchanging feeling of summer throughout the year in Shenzhen, but it became hard to remember "what I did two months ago," leaving large blank areas in my memory.
So many surreal things happened during the pandemic, and I gradually began to forget the details, making that period increasingly fuzzy. I believe these personal perspectives and details of such historic events are crucial historical details. They remind us that history is not just a series of major events but a sum of countless ordinary people's experiences.
So I started keeping a diary.
For me, forgetting isn't really forgetting. Because after writing in my diary, even after a long time, rereading it allows me to piece together most of the details from that day. It seems it's not that the hard drive of a middle-aged person is full; the memories are still there, just retrieval issues.
A diary is like an index, transforming fragmented, chaotic memories into coherent ones. With memories intact, past time no longer just slips away unnoticed; each day is felt.
It's not only daily life; now I also record my dreams if I can remember them. Usually, the details of dreams are forgotten within a few hours, but once documented, I can recall the dream scenes even after many days.
That's how aging is—I often reminisce about the past. I've lost many years of my life timeline, but going forward, that shouldn't happen anymore.
I suggest you start keeping a diary too.