Memories are very tricky things. More often that not, memories are actually true. Dr. Wede explained that if most of our memories weren’t true our lives’ would be a total mess. However, it is hard to be completely certain whether a memory is true or false. Imagination can play a big role in how someone remembers something. As we talked about in class, it is also difficult to actually remember events that happened at a really young age. Imagination can play a role in the way that memories are constructed and can either enhance or hinder the credibility of a memory.

In my own experience, there is a memory that I have from when I was probably five or six years old. My family went on vacation to Disney World for a week. The resort that we were staying at had a pool that had one end that was a section designed specifically for kids with shallow water and holes that water popped up through. Then, the further you walk in the deeper the water gets. When I was this small, we had a floaty ring that I was supposed to wear around my waist. I went in without this ring and kept walking to where I couldn’t touch. My memory is very clear of me going under the water and looking up toward the sky seeing that I was underwater and freaking out. I remember a specific one of my aunts saving me.

The problem? This aunt wasn’t on vacation with us. This event is perfectly clear to me in my head, but when I ask about it, I am told that this aunt wasn’t there at all. It makes me wonder if any of this memory is true at all. It is obvious that imagination has played a role in creating or at least shaping this memory because my mind told me that my favorite aunt had saved me when she wasn’t even there. It’s amazing the way we can have memories that seem so real to us, but that might not be real at all.