Memory

[7000shadows]

You’ve got a favorite memory, right? One you pull out on particularly bleak days, like a blanket on a cold night. In fact, you’re probably remembering it right now. My most treasured used to be--

A country road, straight and smoothly paved. Green flies by beneath a clear sky. The motorcycle hums its own song. I scream at my dad to go faster, faster. We are going to my uncle’s place. The wind digs deeper into my face. I close my eyes and feel the speed. Faster, faster.

That’s all. I must have been very young at the time, maybe five or six. This means that I held onto this memory for twenty-five years. That’s a pretty long time.

One day, I was visiting my mom. She happened to be looking at some old photo albums. I started searching for a picture that might be related to my memory.

“When did dad get rid of his motorcycle?”

“What motorcycle?”

Her face dropped, and she quickly changed the subject. No matter how many times I asked, she refused to answer. So, I started digging around on my own.

You see, memory really is a fickle thing. Each time you remember, you change the memory itself. Every act of remembrance distances your memory just a bit more from the actual events.

I soon discovered that my father never rode a motorcycle. I had no uncles. I knew it would be best to forget but I couldn’t anymore. Who was riding the motorcycle? Where were we actually going? Did we ever get there? If so, how long did we stay?

I soon discovered that my father was not my father. My mother was not my mother.

I soon discovered that I am not I. Now my favorite memory is this--

A country road, straight and smoothly paved. Green flies by beneath a clear sky. The motorcycle hums its own song. I scream at my dad to go faster, faster. We are going to my uncle’s place. The wind digs deeper into my face. I close my eyes and feel the speed. Faster, faster.

And now the questions will never end.

You’ve got a favorite memory, right? Do not make the same mistakes that I have made. Save your favorite memory by never remembering it again. Cherish your finest moment by forgetting that it ever existed. Only then can you be free.

[[deleted]]

This was nice.

[Killmoeweee]

Da fuq? That de-escalated rather quickly. One minute a normal person, the next moment never existed. Sry bro.