Don’t Just Trust Your Memory, Join Forces

The fact that our memories are not always reliable was brought home to me just recently and it taught me a very valuable lesson. Growing up I was always aware that a certain family member had what is commonly known as a colourful past. He was infamous in his younger days and a regular headline grabber. Well I had known so many stories involving him and even mentioned when he died, that a book about his life would be very interesting. He died in the late 1970’s and throughout the years since then I have often thought of the book idea, but always dismissed it, as I felt that I would not be able to present the full picture. My thoughts were based on the fact that when I had known him, he had been a reformed character and loving family man. Recently I contacted a writer who had mentioned my relative in one of his books. The reason for contacting him was for an exchange of information, as I knew he wanted certain information and thought it would be interesting for us both.

After a telephone call and two weeks of emails being sent back and forth my new friend, the writer I had contacted has asked me to collaborate on a book. In his words together we may just be able to tell the whole story concerning my late relative. And now we come to the problem.  So much information is locked inside my mind. Memories are very unreliable, when it comes to needing information. I had not really thought very much about this man for a long time. Now all of a sudden I’m having to stretch my thoughts back nearly thirty years and this is proving very difficult. Most of the major players in the life story we are hoping to write are sadly no longer with us, or if they are I have no idea where they may be. I thought about the project as a vague possibility as far back as 1980. If back then I had spoken to people and taken notes I would now be in a far better position. I suppose at the back of my mind I always assumed two things. Number one that I would always be able to remember anything that was really that important and number two who would really be interested in my side of things. Well number one is proving a task in itself and as for number two; well quite a lot of people seem very interested.