We all have that earliest memory.
Some of us can remember things incredibly young. Some only imagine those memories. The human mind is quite amazing and tricky.
As a child, the earliest memory I had was one of looking down, and feeling petrified of falling. I remember seeing what seemed like an incredible distance. As humans, we know we can’t survive a fall. And so our survival instinct kicks in. Perhaps it is our subconscious taking over, the primitive instinct overriding our logical side.
I remember seeing a railing, and a big hole. As our memories can fade – perhaps at 2 years old, I remembered even more about that experience. I wonder if it affected my sleep? Did it cause nightmares?
Years later, looking through a photo album of family, I happened upon a picture. This was me, a tiny child, taken with I believe my mother (If I can find this photo, I will scan and post it). The interesting thing was that we were standing at a railing. In New York. The railing was around a huge square hole in the sidewalk. It was for the cooling/heating system to release the air.
As soon as I saw this photo, my earliest memory snippet immediately came to mind.
As that young child, I felt the paralyzing fear of falling.
As an older child, and as a young adult, I still felt that paralyzing fear of falling.
I wonder, was it because of this experience as a child? If I had never seen this at such a young age, would I still have had that same fear of heights?
What is your earliest memory? How did it affect you? I’d like to know.
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