The word daisy is pretty. The image is prettier than the word. The number of petals in the picture doesn’t matter — unless you’re a kid plucking petals to determine loves me, loves me not…
I used to complain about having to remember numbers, such as dates on history tests. What did it matter?
It matters to know when major events took place, such as the American Revolution, the Civil War, the Great Depression, World War II, etc. The order of events and general “ball park” dates matter to better understand the historical timeline associated with how we got to where we are. This assumes, of course, that one also learns “why” we got to where we are.
So, I suppose a good thing about getting older is that we find out why things like numbers matter. Most of us do, anyway.
I easily recall useless numbers from the past – my first telephone number, my best friend’s telephone number. These are easy to remember because we had to give the operator the number each time we made a call. No texts or email or even dialing in those days. The act of speaking and hearing one’s voice helps with memory. Speaking aloud is a good way to remember something. Nowadays, if you’re talking to yourself, folks will just think you’re on the cellphone, anyway.
I still prefer words to numbers, however. Sometimes I recite the grocery list in the car – bread, eggs, apples, dessert. I try to create a word to help me remember what I need to buy. B-e-a-d works for the above, for example. That’s the only word I have to remember enroute to the store – bead. For longer lists I can sometimes create a complete sentence. The bird sings in the tree…good for 18 items.
Numbers can’t do that!
What tricks do you use to remember everyday, mostly boring but necessary, information?
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