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Music for Memory

Reading this article about how the memory of music is not lost to dementia and Alzheimer's made me wonder if it was possible to use music to encode and store all those other memories that could be lost. If we could create associations between memories in a systematic way, maybe we can preserve all that we value. Most of my favorite music always takes me back to the first time I heard it. While listening I could relive that moment all over again. Not all of these memories are happy or positive though many are. 

Then there is music you were introduced to by someone you love. They turn up the car radio when the song plays and tell you their story - why they love the song, what it means to them and what memories they associate with it. Or sometimes they skip the details and just insist that you hear and make your own connection with it. I love the backstories around people's favorite music -especially the odd and out of place stuff that you would never associate with them. 

 My mother still recognizes some of the music I played as a teen though most might have been noise to her. The few tunes that struck her as melodic or memorable stayed with her.  I am thinking of the music I hear J play - very little of is "sticky" for me. I envy parents who are on trend and can actually enjoy the music their kids listen to. There are so many good conversations that can begin with such shared interest. Reading this article makes me want to try harder to like what J likes - if that is my safety against forgetting a large chunk of life, I will gladly do the work it takes. 
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