Making New Memories in 2022

Happy New Year Everyone!

I hope you are all feeling optimistic with renewed gratitude for new beginnings.

I serendipitously discovered the book "The Art of Making Memories" by Meik Wiking, the same author of "The Little Book of Hygge." It caught my attention because I value memories. Memories carry us through difficult times in our lives. Take for instance the Covid-19 pandemic. It wasn't safe for us to travel and clearly there was that desire for adventure. On social media, many people posted their travel photos from years past with wistful captions, "Hope to do this again soon" or "Can't wait to travel again." Nostalgia was one of the ways that helped us through lockdown. 

For those we lost during the pandemic, we look back on all the lovely memories we had with them and keep these in our hearts. 

Again, nostalgia. 

We should be more mindful about creating new memories and the book has these suggestions or what Meik Wiking calls, "The Memory Manifesto." 

These are the eight ingredients for happy memories:

Make sure your memory isn't lacking in sensory richness. Be aware of what you see, smell, hear and feel when you are happy. The more of your senses -- sight, smell, hearing, taste, touch -- you can use, the more vividly you can remember; and the more cues you line up, the more likely it is that you can hold on to that memory and retrieve it.

An emotional reaction will make the experiences and moments more memorable: first kisses, getting married, traumatic events, doing something that scares us.

Retrieval is one of the best ways to strengthen a memory.

These are thoughtful suggestions and aren't hard to do, don't you agree?

Meik Wiking ends the book this way:

Let's turn this New Year from "blah to TADA!" and let's all make an effort to create lasting memories.