Y don't people remember their 1st moment?

As I mentioned in another post at this website, I recall being at a river and floating away as two or three males watched me go. As I floated away, I lost conscious memory of what things were about.

And so for me, ALL my self-awareness began with my memory of first being at this river in the world before this world. Where I was and what I was doing before I was watched leaving said river, I have no idea whatsoever.

My memories following this clear river departure memory are somewhat fragmented. That is, I have vague memories of being with my mom's sister and having at times to use an outhouse, or being helped by an adult and having to use an outhouse. I think it was because I didn't like being near or having anything to do with an outhouse that causes me to have any memories at all during this very early period of being in my body.

After those vague memories, I recall a clearer memory of waking up while sitting in this young ladies lap, as the man she was with drove all three of us down the road. Right after being aware of my situation, i.e. in a car and in this ladies lap, she and I licked tongues at her initiative. Then again at mine.

I had the sense that they both liked me. She told me two things. 1.) That I was going to live with my real family. 2.) That when I grew up I was going to be famous. (Of course she just said that to make me feel good.)

(Incidentally, there was also a big rat in the car and the guy nonchalantly reached down and tossed it out by its tail. I felt bad for the poor rat having to hit the hard road like that.)

So they dropped me off with my "real" family and left, and I don't think I ever saw them again.

I think that in those very early days of my life, I was going in and out of my body. I believe that there really is a place called oblivion, and that that was the place where I was going when I wasn't in my body, as I know (or think I know) that I wasn't going back and forth from my body to the river.

THEN, it happened that I just sort of one day slid into my body; a little like how a letter slides into an envelope. As a matter of fact, I recall that even at the time when I slid in that I was thinking that that was how it seemed -- me, like a letter being placed in an envelope. And ever since then, I've always remained inside of my current body, save for a few lucid dream excursions.

And so my point to bringing all this up is, Why is it that one often hears about what a person was doing when president Kennedy was assassinated ... or when some guy hitting a baseball broke a record ... or when the space shuttle Challenger blew up ... or when 9/11 happened, BUT, mysteriously, one seldom ever hears people recalling that stupendous moment of when they *first* became aware of their own beingness??

To me it seems very odd that there is so very little talk or anything ever written about this ... as if, save for myself, people must have either been here forever or their self-awareness just kinda trickled on very slowly, like slowly turning a knob to a greater volume, or something.

It just baffles me, for example, that the event of some dude hitting a ball with a stick is (apparently) for some people more important and memorable than when they first realized that THEY -- he/she -- existed!

Thanks in advance 4 your time and any (friendly)comments you might have!

Very intresting post. My first or earliest memory is of standing in a cot and trying to climb out and Im wearing a nappy (daiper for Americans) so I must have been very young. I recall the room and my surroundings vividly, it was the house I grew up in.
After that, a few scattered memories as a small child playing with a particular toy car and tonka truck in the same room at christmas, perhaps 4 years old.
Its strange, I never gave much thought to early memories till now, but many childhood memories com flooding back, as vivid as the day they happened, as I write I remember a particular day in which I was sat down and My aunt tried to exoplain that my father had died, also at 4 years.
Memory is the greatest mystery. I hope some day we find a way to extract and record them.
Thanks

Our memories begin to form and make neural connections when we begin to learn language. This is because we have words and their meanings to tie to events, and this helps recall it later. Technically, everything you've ever experienced is somewhere in your brain, from the moment you came out of your mothers womb. But it is impossible to recall these events, because your memory was too weak to make sense of anything.

Another important thing that should addressed is the fact that also, a lot of your memories are either misinterepted from the actual events or entirely false. Misinterepted meaning if you could go back to an actual particular event it would be nothing like how you remember it, because your senses and moods greatly affect how you precieve them. False meaning a certain event you "remember", never actually happened at all. This has been shown true in court cases where parents are accused of sexual abuse on young children. The young children will be asked so many times about particular instances of sexual abuse by a parent, that it gets to the point where they actually believe it, and create entirely false memories. Now, im not saying all cases are like this, but there have been case where its been completely proven that the parent did NOT sexually abuse their children, yet their children still insist it happened. In other words, it might as well be completely true because those memories will never leave their minds.

Now finally onto my question. Please dont take offense at this as I dont mean to offend you in any way. I notice you are Christian, the story of a baby floating down a river reminds me of a story from the bible, where Jesus was sent floating down a river in a basket to escape the orders to kill every male new born baby. Do you think it is possible that you formed these memories from this story? Im not exactly sure why im asking, because im sure it seems very real to you. I just have to throw that out there. Is there any reason that would lead you to believe you had other parents? Any evidence?

[edit on 15-1-2005 by Alec Eiffel]

Another important thing that should addressed is the fact that also, a lot of your memories are either misinterepted from the actual events or entirely false. Misinterepted meaning if you could go back to an actual particular event it would be nothing like how you remember it, because your senses and moods greatly affect how you precieve them. False meaning a certain event you "remember", never actually happened at all. This has been shown true in court cases where parents are accused of sexual abuse on young children. The young children will be asked so many times about particular instances of sexual abuse by a parent, that it gets to the point where they actually believe it, and create entirely false memories. Now, im not saying all cases are like this, but there have been case where its been completely proven that the parent did NOT sexually abuse their children, yet their children still insist it happened. In other words, it might as well be completely true because those memories will never leave their minds.

I beleive this relates to and explains "MOST" alien abduction cases!

Alec Eiffel,

I'm not offended at all, and I appeciate your many comments.

With respect to what I said about my first memory ever: I didn't say that I was floating *down* a river; I said I was at a river and floated up and away, and two or three males watched me go.

All I can say is that this memory has always remained clear throughout my life.

Also, with respect to court cases whereby children have claimed sexual molestation by a parent: While there's no doubt memories can indeed be tricky things sometimes because, as you pointed out, emotions can skew things, one also has to believe that "some" of those molestation cases really did happen (depending on how big of a study we're talking about), and that the child was right to insist they did.

Also, I should think that this sort of memory study would have to take into account that sometimes children lie ... and thus it could be tempting to attribute the "sincerity" of the lie to false memory syndrome, yes?

But for sure, people's memories can easily be shown to be less than perfect, after all if one examines for a few minutes a long list of random numbers, it's easy to not be able to recite them back in their correct order even if a fair amount of time was spent studying them.

I think you might find this interesting, I found it several years ago while paging through a Life After Death book. It comes from Plato's The Republic, Book X. And while I'm not sure if it's written as being fact or fiction, it is rather similar to my own recollection and is, I think, eloquent. ...

"Now, when all the souls had chosen their lives... they all traveled into the plain of Lethe... In the evening they encamped by the Forgetful River, whose waters no pitcher can hold. And all were compelled to drink a certain measure of its water; and those who had no wisdom to save them drank more than the measure. And as each man drank he forgot everything. When they had gone to rest, and it was now midnight, there was a clap of thunder and an earthquake; and in a moment the souls were carried up to their birth, this way and that, like shooting stars."

Originally posted by Alec Eiffel
I notice you are Christian, the story of a baby floating down a river reminds me of a story from the bible, where Jesus was sent floating down a river in a basket to escape the orders to kill every male new born baby.
[edit on 15-1-2005 by Alec Eiffel]

I think that was Moses

I don't entirely agree that early memories are developed through language. Everyone "remembers" the traumatic (or wonderful, or however you will have it) moment at which they were born, but the memory is of a different kind altogether than ones that come about when concepts and associations are learned.

"Flashbulb" memories like Kennedy this or 9/11 that are all based in associations - you have a heightened state of awareness when something shocking enters your conscious, and many peripheral things and events will stay with that memory by association.

Correct...that was Moses that was put in a basket and floated down the Nile was it?....or at least that is the legend....Maybe whoever started this thread was Moses in a past life? You should see if you still have powers. Try parting a sea...or maybe start small with a pond....or even smaller with a bath tub or simply a puddle......Seen any burning bushes lately?

And speaking of Bushes....doesn't that whole family S*CK!!!!!!

My first memory was of me walking around our apartment. I told my mom this and she didn't believe me because at the time of this memory I was only one and a half. She had never described or even told me about the apartment so I could not have created a false memory about it. The clarity of this memory was so definite that I proved to her that I remembered by drawning a layout of the rooms that I could remember.

Originally posted by TheManInTheShadows
....... or their self-awareness just kinda trickled on very slowly, like slowly turning a knob to a greater volume, or something.

theres the thought that the Shamans journey thru the dark tunnel to the bright-light is a recalling of the birthing experience.

i sorta think that at birth- your in a kinda shock, being no longer in that dark warm waterworld..you have found your body now under assault by
light, sound, air, all kinds of intense stimuli....your orientation has been upset...all these factors are attended to by an automatic response as
the 'you' of worldly experience has not yet developed...
the self contained, ambulatory, organized, animal that you are is
se;f-aware but preoccupied with survival...later on the ego and reproduction awareness begins.

bottom line, you do remember the birth, theres just a lot of bells-whistles
distracting the average-normal person from recalling. try hypnotism or regression or shaman training or many eastern philosophies for connecting

ditto on MaskedAvatars' concepts in that post

I barely remember what I ate for dinner last night, let alone my first moment.

The first thing I remember is standing at a small tree witch had a robe hanging from it. I used to play with it reguarly..
After that, the tree was cut down, and it was very special to me! I first found out when I got too it myself, not by being told, so it was a schok.

So I think it was a very strong experience and therefore the memory of the tree was imprinted in my long lasting memory..