I’ve logged my daily life every day for the last 7+ years. It surprises me how much I can recall by going back and reading an old log. I haven’t made an effort to remember every single day myself, but I’m interested to hear how this project goes.
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Thanks for your question.
I think there have been various positive effects, aside from the benefits of being able to remember where and when events in my life took place.
There are some posts on my blog tagged as ‘side effects’ that explore these effects. Others tagged ‘in my life’ relate to how being able to remember every day that passes has impacted in a personal way.
Certainly it gives me perspective. In the process of reviewing the images pinned to my internal calendar as memory tags, I am often aware of the start of a period of uncertainty and challenge, the phases of it, and the outcome. This has a grounding effect when a similar period comes around. In fact, in difficult times I find my daily long review of one day per month calming because of the reminds me that all things pass.
Another benefit is I reflect on all aspects of my life, the people close to me, how I have reacted to situations, and so on. I think this gives me a healthy perspective. In the past, I might have spent a large part of a day troubled by a particular memory or set of memories and found it difficult to let go. For example, I don’t think I am unusual in having an inner critical voice, which is sometimes too present, perhaps taunting me with times I have embarassed myself. Those memories are still there, but within a much broader and richer tapestry of other memories. I am less likely to be caught up in them.
It is still an evolving experiment. Whenever I wonder if it is sustainable (I’m approaching 1,000 days now), some positive benefit becomes apparent that makes me want to continue with the review process that seems essential for retaining these memory tags. Even though the number of days inevitably keeps growing, for now at least it is getting easier. The times when I have to work at retrieving a lost image are less frequent, not more.
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Thanks Lembran,
There is a theory to explain why time starts to pass faster when you age. (an 8th years old child perceives time more slowly compared to 50 years old person).
With age we start to neglect daily activities (eating, driving car, going to work etc.) since they become mundane and boring. Brain tends to stop recording these regular activities and by the end of the day when you look back, you feel that a lot of time passed very fast (since you don’t have the record of it).
Did you start to feel that your time passes slowly with this experiment?
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I think the simplest explanation of time passing faster as you get older is simply that time seems relatively “bigger” to young children, because they have experienced less of it.
A year is a whole third of a 3-year-old’s life. Christmas is something he’s only experienced 2 times, or more likely only 1 time in his memory (if he even remembers the previous Christmas, which isn’t likely).
Preteens start to notice time accelerating. (I remember this experience myself, and I’ve talked with preteens who are undergoing the same thing.) Each year feels significantly shorter than the last. At age 10, a year is 10% of your life, but at 13, it’s less than 8% of your life. Each Christmas seems less memorable than the last when compared with every other Christmas; they all start to blend together. Each year becomes less special.
For a 50-year-old, another year is just 2% of his life. Every new Christmas passes like dozens of others.
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This is an interesting question.
It doesn’t in that I am amazed that we are already into the second half of 2014.
But if I think back to what I was doing on this day a year ago, then that does seem a long time. Two years ago seems an age.
I have better appreciation of what a year is from being able to run through 365 days, remembering the significant and not so significant events, seeing the abrupt changes of scene and circumstance, as well as more gradual transitions.
My daily routine is to recall an image per month from the start of this process to the present date. I’ve just posted a blog exploring a run through the 22nd of each month.
http://lembransation.blogspot.com/2014/07/run-through.html
So although I wouldn’t say time has slowed down for me, I don’t ever think, ‘Where did the time go?’
I know where it went.
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I have just passed the 1000-day landmark in this experiment in remembering every day that passes.
As I did so, my process of remembering the images pinned to my mental calendar suffered total meltdown. I had a very hectic time last week and could not complete the reviews that I normally run through each day.
For a moment I was overwhelmed and it seemed like the experiment had reached its natural end.
But then I discovered a memory reboot technique that has put me back on track. See my blog at:
http://lembransation.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/memory-reboot.html
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And so year four begins. Who’d have thought it!
http://lembransation.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/starting-year-four.html
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Congratulations, sir 
That’s a pretty monumental, and inspirational achievement.
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With over three years of memory tags, I’ve had to modify the technique I use to keep them fresh.
Basically, instead of conducting a daily review of a day per month for the past three years plus, I am now reviewing two days per month, but spread over two days.
I think this will be more manageable. See: Coping with three years of daily memories
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An unexpected problem has arisen now that I am well into the fourth year of remembering every day that passes.
When a memory of a past event in this period comes to mind it is sometimes difficult to know how long ago it was. It’s not the old problem of having no idea of how much time has passed with no anchor to orientate me. It is because events from two or three years ago still seem fresh.
As an example, my wife and I have visited the coast around Christmas time for the past few years. My memory tag for one year is arriving at my sister-in-law’s apartment in a taxi. Remembering it recently, it took me a moment to accept it was in 2013 as it was so clear.
I had to walk over my mental calendar to be sure.
A long time ago I introduced full date tagging for images. So the image has the date 27 December 2013. The trouble is that in running through my refresh technique, I become lazy and miss off the year.
So I’ve changed the technique now to give the year first when I pull up an image during my regular run throughs.
My current refresh technique is under ‘about me’ on my blog: http://lembransation.blogspot.com
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This is a FANTASTIC project! Congratulations!
It seems like everyday I find new inspirations for learning the Art of Memory… THANK YOU!
Please, keep us posted!
Best!
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Lembran Sar,
I’ve read your posts here and on your blog. Would you consider writing a short, concise, guide at the top of this post? It would be of great service to the community here, and save people from getting lost between your blog and your replies here. Likely, it wouldn’t have to be updated too regularly, so that one “pinned” post would be the definitive source here.
Sincerely,
-Tof…
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Hi Lembran, I’m inspired by your project and I have started my own experiment too!
My current practice involves picking a moment that I wish to remember for the day, and create an image relating to that incident, compounding it with some information related to the date (e.g. Sep 14) and weekday (Monday), then pinned it down to a visual calendar page in my mind inside a memory palace with 1 room for each month…
It’s still too early (just started for less than a week!) and need to see how this works out!
May I know if you could remember all things that had happened for a particular day or just some selected moments?
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Hey, firstly, great job, you are truly an inspiration. Then, I’m not sure if I should do it too. I’m worried about the side effects because remembering very well what you did 4 years ago can be very depressing. It doesn’t make you sad that time flies ? On a thought you are 4 years ago, then, you open you eyes and you are in the present. When we forget, we don’t feel this, we just are in the present, like it’s always been like this and will always be. I know it’s an illusion, but that makes us happier don’t you think ?
It’s like someone remembering like it was yesterday his 10th birthday and then he realize that he’s 80.
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Thanks for your comment.
If you go to my blog and check on the right-hand side under ABOUT ME, there’s a link called “refresh technique”, which explains the basics of what I have been doing. As it changes over time, it’s best to check there for the latest version.
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Thanks rtpub. Let us know how it goes.
I don’t remember all things for a particular day. I create an image as a memory tag, similar to what you describe here, and pin that to my mental calendar. It sometimes encompases several events and sometimes involves sounds as well as images, but often it is just one particular moment that captures something of the day that I want to remember.
When I review the memory tags - something I find essential - there are often other memories that come back to me for the day, triggered by the memory tag.
In fact, I’m currently catching up with writing my diary. At the moment, I’m in January 2014, so the events took place nearly two years ago (I purposely have not written diary entries for days as they happen as I fear I would fall back on the diary rather than relying on this memory technique). I’m writing an entry for every day, using this technique to remember them. Some entries are just a description of the moment in my memory tag, but for most I write much more, almost as if I was writing the entry at the time.
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Hi Benten,
You are right to talk of side effects. I find remembering every day that passes does have some profound effects, though I’ve not found any of them to be negative so far.
As I review past days as part of the refresh technique I use to stop them fading, I’m often struck by the passage of time. Some things are surprising for being so recent. Others for being so long ago. The past isn’t frozen in time either, because different things strike me when I recall past days depending on my present situation.
I don’t find being more aware of the passage of time makes me sad. Quite the opposite. Remembering stops the blur of time. I often feel grateful that a particular event or phase of my life is not gone, but I will carry it with me for as long as I can keep this up.
So far I don’t feel disconnected from the present. I don’t spend that much of the day going over past memories. My refresh technique generally fits into my getting up and going to sleep routines. I don’t find it disruptive, but pleasurable.
I’ve not aged too much myself over this period - and my measure of health has been improving since I took up running road races. But a close family member has died and my mother has developed memory loss, which has become very pronounced. So having clear memories of better times involving these loved ones is valuable.
That said, I don’t know where this is going. I still look on it as an experiment and am surprised it is still sustainable.
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Lembran,
I just joined this site, but this is the only thread so far that I’ve had my eyes glued to every single message. Your journey is an inspiration, and I sincerely look forward to your next update.
I plan on starting my own memory calendar soon (once I’ve oriented myself with memory techniques in general). I believe as you do that this can only enrich my life. Wish me luck!
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And so 2015 is over and I now have four full years of memory tags. My refresh technique for refreshing the images pinned to my mental calendar has become more relaxed over the course of the year. I write about that on this blog posting looking back over the year: http://lembransation.blogspot.com/2016/01/four-full-years-covered-with-memory-tags.html
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I’ve written this blog post for anyone interested in trying my method for remembering every day that passes:
http://lembransation.blogspot.com/2016/02/starting-out.html
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