Posted by vwoolf on May 4, 2008, at 8:23:18
In reply to Something I read today got me thinking, posted by rskontos on May 3, 2008, at 18:02:02
I came across this same quotation a few years ago, and like you, I was very struck by it. It seemed to mean that memory defined me, was who I am. I found it a terrible thought. For myself, for humanity. That we are forever controlled by the past. That all we ever do, the way we see the world, is in terms of the past. That we cannot free ourselves of it, and so we keep repeating it. For those of us with traumatic pasts, it is a shocking affirmation.
I have thought about it a lot, and discussed it with colleagues who work in the field of memory and reconciliation and healing. I have come to the conclusion that it is possible to transcend the past, to become more than memory-controlled robots. But it takes a great deal of self-awareness, to reach a point where one is able to make choices that are not dictated by what has happened before. If I can become aware of what I am doing, and my reasons for doing at any given moment, then I can choose freely. At this point memory shapes my identity, but is not the whole of my identity. It is possible for me to be more.
However I think it is not easy to reach that point. It takes courage to look at my past, to examine who I am without being afraid of the ugly bits. But as long as I hide from it, it will be my destiny to repeat it. And memory will be my identity.
poster:vwoolf
thread:827028
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20080423/msgs/827101.html