I can remember people I haven’t seen in ages and barely even knew when I last saw them because of a smell. An example is my grandmother had a friend that I met twice in my life, at 6 and at 13. Her and her daughter used this hand lotion that smelled of eucalyptus. My dad and I were in a store and I caught that smell and I stopped dead in the aisle and he asked me what was wrong. I told him I remembered someone but I didn’t know who. I physically described both her and her daughter, what they were wearing, what the location looked like, and the small talk we were engaging in. He looked at me stumped that I could remember that at all and he told me their names and I knew I was right. My father’s memory is triggered when someone else tells him stuff. I didn’t remember these women had ever existed until I smelled the eucalyptus.
The sense that is the one that triggers the most is taste, but in a strange way. I have had memories surface because of tastes, but it’s the memory of the tastes that triggers the rest of my memory. I have traveled around the world, but there are times when I CANNOT remember a city/town or even an entire trip. My ex used to think it was impossible until he found the key: my love of food. I would swear on a stack of Bibles that I hadn’t been someplace, and even after describing to me everything we did, I’d have no memory of it. The memory was just gone. On a lark, he mentioned a good that we had gotten at a street vendor, and I immediately remembered the vendor and that food. From there, I was able to build the city and the trains that we took, the hotel we stayed in, every place we had gone to, and what we had seen over the course of two days in that city. He thought I had been messing with him, but I wasn’t. Now, he’ll ask me if I remember going to [insert entire continent here] and when I say no, he’ll say “we ate [insert random food here]” and sit back with google maps open to see if I really remember it. My favorite story like this was in Greece. My father, ex and I went together and stayed in a cute hotel about 2 blocks from a restaurant my dad decided was his favorite restaurant ever built in the history of the world, so he made us eat there every night. The owner made us promise to come back the next night, every night, where he would make us a complete Greek dinner that was not on the menu. It was amazing. Twelve years later, we had gone back with the entire family and we were walking all around. My ex thought it was hilarious that I was loving it so much since I had already seen it, but I didn’t remember at all. We were going all around and finally my mother said she was hungry. My ex called me over and told me that she was hungry and I didn’t know what he wanted me to do about it. Then he told everyone else “watch this…”
Then said “she wants that restaurant we went to every single night we were here.” I said I had never been here before and he said “pita bread in Greece”. You would think that would do nothing but I knew it. I started describing the restaurant in detail and he just said “this time, GO.” And I just walked away. Everyone just followed me. For over 2 miles, they just walked behind me as I followed the streets in my memory to the restaurant. Then I just stopped and pointed…. At a restaurant I had not seen in 12 years. My sister’s bf didn’t believe it was possible, but just in case he had gotten a map. He traced the line from where we were to every turn I made to get to the restaurant. I didn’t loop around in a confused manner – I made a fairly straight shot. There was one section I took a strange 2 block detour to get around and no one knew why, but we accepted that it was more-or-less a straight shot as if I had lived there for 12 years (found out much later that when we had been there, the streets I avoided were under construction so pedestrians were not allowed. Go figure.
Scent is the strongest, but for me it’s taste overall. I can’t deny I’m a glutton lol
Hearing. When I hear a song from my younger days (and since I listen mostly to classic rock, that happens often), that very often brings up old memories of who I was with and what I was doing and feeling at the time.
For a moment I had to think, then it was obvious. Music of all sorts takes me back to time and place and music I really love makes the memories extra special.
Cyranny's Cove 
Oh definitely my sense of smell!
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Smell and taste.
I can remember people I haven’t seen in ages and barely even knew when I last saw them because of a smell. An example is my grandmother had a friend that I met twice in my life, at 6 and at 13. Her and her daughter used this hand lotion that smelled of eucalyptus. My dad and I were in a store and I caught that smell and I stopped dead in the aisle and he asked me what was wrong. I told him I remembered someone but I didn’t know who. I physically described both her and her daughter, what they were wearing, what the location looked like, and the small talk we were engaging in. He looked at me stumped that I could remember that at all and he told me their names and I knew I was right. My father’s memory is triggered when someone else tells him stuff. I didn’t remember these women had ever existed until I smelled the eucalyptus.
The sense that is the one that triggers the most is taste, but in a strange way. I have had memories surface because of tastes, but it’s the memory of the tastes that triggers the rest of my memory. I have traveled around the world, but there are times when I CANNOT remember a city/town or even an entire trip. My ex used to think it was impossible until he found the key: my love of food. I would swear on a stack of Bibles that I hadn’t been someplace, and even after describing to me everything we did, I’d have no memory of it. The memory was just gone. On a lark, he mentioned a good that we had gotten at a street vendor, and I immediately remembered the vendor and that food. From there, I was able to build the city and the trains that we took, the hotel we stayed in, every place we had gone to, and what we had seen over the course of two days in that city. He thought I had been messing with him, but I wasn’t. Now, he’ll ask me if I remember going to [insert entire continent here] and when I say no, he’ll say “we ate [insert random food here]” and sit back with google maps open to see if I really remember it. My favorite story like this was in Greece. My father, ex and I went together and stayed in a cute hotel about 2 blocks from a restaurant my dad decided was his favorite restaurant ever built in the history of the world, so he made us eat there every night. The owner made us promise to come back the next night, every night, where he would make us a complete Greek dinner that was not on the menu. It was amazing. Twelve years later, we had gone back with the entire family and we were walking all around. My ex thought it was hilarious that I was loving it so much since I had already seen it, but I didn’t remember at all. We were going all around and finally my mother said she was hungry. My ex called me over and told me that she was hungry and I didn’t know what he wanted me to do about it. Then he told everyone else “watch this…”
Then said “she wants that restaurant we went to every single night we were here.” I said I had never been here before and he said “pita bread in Greece”. You would think that would do nothing but I knew it. I started describing the restaurant in detail and he just said “this time, GO.” And I just walked away. Everyone just followed me. For over 2 miles, they just walked behind me as I followed the streets in my memory to the restaurant. Then I just stopped and pointed…. At a restaurant I had not seen in 12 years. My sister’s bf didn’t believe it was possible, but just in case he had gotten a map. He traced the line from where we were to every turn I made to get to the restaurant. I didn’t loop around in a confused manner – I made a fairly straight shot. There was one section I took a strange 2 block detour to get around and no one knew why, but we accepted that it was more-or-less a straight shot as if I had lived there for 12 years (found out much later that when we had been there, the streets I avoided were under construction so pedestrians were not allowed. Go figure.
Scent is the strongest, but for me it’s taste overall. I can’t deny I’m a glutton lol
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Hearing, as in voices and music…
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Vision— Looking at old photos.
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Smell.
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vision – for images, reading and memories!
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Vision – images, colors, reading etc.
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My sight.
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Hearing. When I hear a song from my younger days (and since I listen mostly to classic rock, that happens often), that very often brings up old memories of who I was with and what I was doing and feeling at the time.
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smells and also hearing music.
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For a moment I had to think, then it was obvious. Music of all sorts takes me back to time and place and music I really love makes the memories extra special.
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