Memory, the Things We Keep with Us

🪴Sprout 🙂Agree 🟡Consideration 📝Essay 🏖️Universe-Humans

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The Big Idea

I had no idea that memory and memorization could be as varied and useful as it is. Rote memory is only one form of memory. Here are some of my notes about what I have learned so far.

Similar Notes: Why Learn Storytelling Memorizing the Psalms Memorizing the Lords Prayer Memorizing the Ten Commandments

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Do I have to Memorize It?

We live in a world where memorization is highly deemphasized. We can always look things up. Even more so with AI we can even have a conversation to get needed information easily and quickly without the trouble of storing it within our own minds.

This mentality is not helped with the common monochromatic perspective of memorization. You learn a song or phrase by repeating it over and over until it is “stuck” in your head so it can be regurgitated easily.

Whenever the phrase: “You need to memorize this” comes up, students young and old shutter and call to mind memories of shoving multiplication tables, morphology charts, element tables, formulas, etc. into their minds for the sake of a test.

I experienced that when starting to approach the idea of memorizing sermons

it is super hard and time consuming to word for word memorize something.

It is also very fragile. the smallest distraction and you need to go all the way to the beginning in order to start again.

You also can’t access something in the middle without reciting the whole thing.

Rote Memorization

This kind of memorization also often gets applied to learning Bible versus as well. A parent, teacher or Pastor is usually the one who hands you some kind of sheet or slip (or even makes you write it down yourself) in order to commit the whole thing to memory word for word. When you can finally recite the whole thing without mistakes it is usually deemed to be “memorized.”

I think of my time teaching 7th and 8th grade religion classes and that is exactly what memory verses were. You gave students a verse and then over the week they were expected to study it and be able to spit it out word for word by the end of the week. Success in this context were the students who could recite the verse easily without stopping and starting.

The goal of this kind of memory is to regurgitate word for word the thing being memorized with particular care being taken for exact accuracy.

More to Memorization

Rote memorization is not the only way to memorize

we have so many resources inside our head that we should engage.

engaging imagination with memorization Spatial relationships and location Color and shape Story and action rhythm, pace and music

Memory ends up being the things we allow to live inside us

Functional Memorization

A method that I have practiced when delivering sermons is the shift away from rote memorization. Trying to memorize word for word ten to fifteen minutes of content every single week is a huge amount of work for not a great return. Delivery is always halting or can easily go off track because what is actually committed to memory are the specific words written on the page. In essences, the sermon becomes a verbal regurgitation of a written essay.

Functional memorization takes a more dynamic approach to things. Rather than trying to commit all those specific words to memory. Functional memorization seeks to memorize the key themes, phrases, and stories that “make the sermon go.” Just like in a normal conversation. We do not enter every conversation with a whole script but as we talk our memory works to recall and piece together the things we say as we go.

Functional memorization gives some structure to that normal process. What this looks like practically for me is to write out the main points of a sermon in a brief paragraph form making sure to highlight reference to scripture, stories or other illustrations that go with a point. What this allows me to do is be more freed up to actually talk naturally. I know my points and where I am going so I don’t just talk in circles but I am also able to be reactive the to room I am in. If something happens I can respond to it normally rather than my fragile memorization getting shattered.

One word of caution with this kind of memorization is that you actually have to be living with and in the texts and things you want to share. Otherwise you will deliver a short bullet point and have nothing else to say or expand on. But if while preaching another bible verse or story comes to mind why not just add it in there.

As long as I am regularly reading my bible, practicing stories and normally thinking about faith and theology this kind of memorization has helped to make it possible for me to preach without hardly ever having to look down at notes or need to type out whole manuscripts or totally memorize things word for word.

Peg Method

The peg system is a mnemonic technique that uses mental associations to create a memorable structure. This is done by utilizing a pre-memorized list of words, known as “pegs” that are linked to numbers.

A common approach involves selecting peg words that rhyme with the corresponding numbers, such as “one-bun,” “two-shoe,” and “three-tree,” which facilitates the initial learning of the peg list.

Additionally, each item can be vividly associated with its corresponding peg word through the formation of mental imagery. For instance, if “one” is associated with “bun” and the first item to remember is “milk,” one might visualize a carton of milk balanced precariously on a bun.  

My experiment with adding a peg layer to my memorization of the Lord’s Prayer: Memorizing the Lords Prayer

This system offers the advantage of both sequential and random access to the memorized information. Recalling a specific peg number directly triggers the memory of its associated word, which in turn leads to the retrieval of the linked item.

Beyond the basic rhyming system, variations exist, including the alphabet peg system, where words are associated with letters of the alphabet. More intricate systems like the Major System and the Person-Action-Object (PAO) system allow for the creation of a larger and more versatile set of pegs, significantly expanding the system’s capacity. The progression from simple rhyming pegs to these more elaborate systems illustrates how memory techniques can be developed and refined to meet increasingly demanding memory tasks.  

Memorization for Inner Sight

what do you see when you close your eyes?

the idea that you can tell a story based on imagining and seeing it in your mind as you speak

very different from trying to deal in disparate lines or text or facts that are in memory

Describe the room you are in right now as you see it and look around it. This is your normal sight and you can connect it to your speaking if you want.

shut your eyes and do it again but describe the room from your memory. this is what we are talking about

Experiment with this Memorizing the Ten Commandments

outline the key pieces of things or parts of a story or idea

what is the rhythm of the things that keeps it moving?

can think of the seed of a story. that is the moral point or lesson, the surprise, the turning point or general “payoff” when you hear the story. that Aha moment. In other words the think that makes the story worth telling.

Memory Palace Method

Introduction: Defining the Memory Palace Technique and its Core Principles

The memory palace technique, also known as the method of loci, stands as a cornerstone of mnemonic strategies, tracing its origins back to ancient Roman and Greek rhetorical practices. This powerful technique centers on the visualization of a familiar spatial environment, such as one’s home or a well-known route, within which items to be remembered are mentally placed at distinct locations, referred to as loci. The fundamental principles underpinning this method involve harnessing the brain’s inherent strengths in spatial memory and navigation. By creating vivid and interactive mental images of the items at these locations, individuals establish a structured pathway for recalling information as they mentally navigate through the imagined space.  

The terms “memory palace,” “method of loci,” “memory journey,” “mind palace,” and “Roman room” are often used synonymously to describe this technique, reflecting its enduring relevance and varied applications across time. Its effectiveness is evidenced by the numerous memory contest champions who reportedly utilize this strategy to recall astonishing amounts of information, including digits, lists of words, and playing cards. The technique’s success relies on the memorized spatial relationships that provide order and facilitate the recollection of memorial content. Furthermore, neurological studies involving brain scans of superior memorizers, a significant portion of whom employ the method of loci, have revealed activation in brain regions associated with spatial awareness. These areas include the medial parietal cortex, retrosplenial cortex, and the right posterior hippocampus, underscoring the neurobiological basis for the technique’s efficacy.  

The interchangeable use of terms like “memory palace,” “memory journey,” and “mind palace” to describe the method of loci suggests a core concept with slight variations in how individuals might perceive or implement it. The term “journey” could imply a linear sequence of locations, potentially more suitable for ordered lists, while “palace” might suggest a more intricate, multi-room structure capable of housing more complex and interconnected information. This subtle distinction in terminology may reflect the personalized nature of the technique, where individuals adapt the core principles to their own cognitive styles and the specific demands of the memory task.  

The technique’s reliance on spatial memory connects it to the evolutionary development of navigation and environmental awareness in primates, including humans. Over millennia, the ability to remember locations of resources, shelter, and potential threats has been crucial for survival. The memory palace technique ingeniously leverages this deeply ingrained cognitive strength, originally evolved for spatial tasks, to enhance the memorization of abstract or arbitrary information. This exploitation of a pre-existing cognitive capacity likely contributes to the technique’s remarkable effectiveness compared to rote memorization, which does not tap into these evolved spatial abilities.  

The documented success of memory champions who utilize this technique provides compelling evidence of its potential for achieving high levels of memory performance. These individuals, through dedicated practice and refinement of the method, demonstrate that the memory palace technique is not merely a historical curiosity but a powerful tool for memory enhancement. Their achievements serve as inspiration and indicate that with focused effort, individuals can significantly improve their memory capabilities by adopting and adapting this ancient strategy to their own needs.

Journey and Story Method

• The Journey/Story Method: Creating Narratives and Mental Routes for Memorization

The journey method involves constructing a mental “journey” through a sequence of familiar locations, sharing similarities with the memory palace but often characterized by a more linear and narrative progression. Closely related is the story method, which focuses on interweaving the items to be remembered into a cohesive and memorable story. In the story method, items are linked through plot developments, characters, and actions, rendering the sequence of information easier to recall. The journey method can be viewed as a narrative unfolding across the loci of a memory palace, effectively merging spatial and sequential elements.  

Both methods heavily rely on the power of imagination and the creation of vivid mental images to make the information more engaging and thus more memorable. The story method proves particularly useful for memorizing lists of items or the key points of a text by condensing each point into a single word capable of triggering recall. A powerful strategy involves combining the story method with a memory palace, where mini-stories are created and placed at each locus to facilitate the memorization of extensive information. The underlying effectiveness of the story method stems from the brain’s natural inclination to process and remember narratives more readily than disconnected facts.  

The close relationship between the journey method and the memory palace suggests that a memory palace can serve as a structured framework upon which a narrative, or journey, can be constructed. This integration enhances both the spatial organization of information and the sequential recall of items within that framework. While the memory palace provides the distinct “where” for storing memories, the journey or story method adds the “what happens there” and the logical progression of “why this comes after that,” leveraging both spatial and narrative memory strengths for more effective recall.  

The story method’s efficacy in remembering lists is deeply connected to the brain’s inherent preference for narrative structures. This preference likely evolved due to the importance of remembering sequences of events for survival and learning. Stories provide context and establish connections between disparate pieces of information, making them more meaningful and consequently easier to encode and retrieve from memory. Furthermore, the emotional engagement often elicited by stories can contribute to the formation of stronger and more lasting memory traces.  

The suggestion to utilize existing narratives from movies or novels as a “memory palace” offers a practical and accessible entry point for individuals who might find creating their own detailed mental spaces challenging. By leveraging the pre-existing spatial and narrative structure of a familiar story, individuals can readily associate new information with locations and events within that narrative. This adaptability of memory techniques to utilize pre-existing knowledge and mental frameworks underscores their versatility and potential for personalized application.

Technique	Core Principle	Primary Use Cases	Strengths	Weaknesses
Memory Palace	Spatial association, vivid imagery	Ordered lists, speeches, complex information	Highly versatile, leverages strong spatial memory, scalable	Requires initial setup and visualization skills
Peg System	Number-word association, visual imagery	Ordered lists, direct access to items	Ordered recall, random access, good for numerical data	Requires pre-memorization of pegs
Journey/Story	Narrative creation, sequential association	Ordered lists, sequences of events, main points	Leverages natural narrative memory, engaging	Primarily sequential recall