We just had a powerful typhoon here in Taiwan yesterday--apparently the strongest in some years and also to appear so late in the season. I was holed up at home with the wife and son (on the 4th floor, mind you) and it was constant battering of wind and rain throughout the day. Loose bricks and mortar would occassionally blow down and clatter loudly on thick plastic awnings below. I had wanted to go out and take a walk--don't much like being stuck at home all day--but when I saw some of that debris blown loose with my own eyes, I thought better of it. My wife and son were already determined to grab me by the legs and hold on tight to keep me from going out, bless 'em. Thankfully, I'm not really so foolish; I was just hoping there would be a lull at some point. It didn't calm down until very late last night. Thankfully, the damage was minimal compared to what Sandy did or what happened in Spain this week.
Yes, there's little doubt in mind the body has memory. Are you familiar with the Alexander technique? It takes the position that tension in the body, particularly habitual tension, is rooted in psychological tension, what is termed the psycho-physical relationship, if I remember correctly. I've also read, as others here likely have, that people who receive organ transplants have experiences that support the idea of a direct psycho-physical relationship and/or memory existing throughout the body. And of course, there's the concept of muscle memory bandied about by musicians and athletes alike.
When I did my senior composition recital at university, I built it around my experience in Ghana. Due to the experiences I had at the time, including dreams, family stories, and various memories, I wondered if genetic memory was not also a possibility. I hadn't yet started studying Buddhism, but I was familiar with the idea of past lives, rebirth and reincanation--I had been intrigued ever since my dad told me what David Crosby's "Deja Vu" was about. I don't claim to know that such things exist with certainty, but I believe in the possibility or that at least these ideas do manifest themselves in very tangible ways. I also believe they tell us how very little we really know about ourselves, and that the undiscovered country is a place within us rather than without.
I did not live in NY when Sandy hit, but I remember exactly where I was & who I was with when I watched with horror the images on TV as she advanced. She was a monster in fury. I couldn't imagine how anything would survive. And oh, gosh....I had no idea about that wonder of a boardwalk. Teak. Simply Wow.
Her name was Sandy.
I have friends in the beautiful mountains and city of Asheville, NC where I used to live...a place I had a decades-long relationship to... that I know will say for decades hence "Her name was Helene." The force of nature, an apt phrase for something so fierce it buries entire buildings under mud & water, rips giant trees from the ground, wipes complete towns from their foundations, sends them into the rivers along with the asphalt streets that ran thru them.
I had a cough that turned into a sinus infection and it seems to be everywhere so do be careful. Have they rebuilt the boardwalk? Now poor Spain has had flooding. I live in a tiny house on a lake in Maine and fear flooding.
Yes, it does seem that the body has a memory. There are day you can breathe in and out and be transported to a day and time that still resonates a memory. I believe that, too. Thank you for this story and for the reminiscence. I had no idea that the boardwalk was gone. So many memories of escaping the heat and sun by slipping under the boardwalk, and luxuriating in the cool sand for a while. Transistor radio. Your little cottage seems the perfect haven......thank you for sharing this memory with us.
Thank you for these thoughts, dear Patti. Your little house looks like a perfect haven. Thanks for sharing its picture. I'm so glad you could have it repaired so beautifully. Now when I board your M Train I'll think of you woolgathering by the Ocean while sipping coffee on your stoop. 💙
A little late, but boy do I remember Sandy. I live in Rumson, NJ which is between 2 rivers and Sandy Hook and Sea Bright on the ocean are just across the river. I remember so many boats on people’s front lawns when the water receded! We walked to the bridge to Sea Bright and Sandy Hook, which are basically a barrier island that just into the Atlantic across from Brooklyn, and the one road, Ocean Ave., was nothing but sand. The ocean breached the very high sea wall, spilled over and retook the barrier island before returning to itself, but not without destroying every home, business and road in its way. I never saw anything even remotely close. And because the waters, either from the sea or the brackish rivers, were salty, so many homes had to be entirely pulled down and started over. I also remember that Halloween in my neighborhood, which was supposed to be cancelled, but we all came together with candles and bonfires and dressed up so our children could have Halloween. We had so much fun despite no power (which for us was out for just over 2 weeks).
hola Patti, same happened here in Spain yesterday. Called La Dana, an extreme weather event resulting in many deaths and massive destruction. We are ok here in Barcelona, fortunately. The president, Pedro Sanchez, has declared 3 days of mourning. Red alerts continue in parts of the country, as the instability continues.
It’s nearly midnight as I listened to your story. I too have experienced body-memory. Usually begins with a dream fragment that lingers upon waking. Thank you for sharing your feelings & thoughts with us. The story of your little house is one of my favorites. Recently reread it, actually. Thank you.
Thanks for the check in. Always so good to hear your voice, Patti, you always raise my spirits, which have been a bit frayed with the Election. I've been canvassing for the Harris and Slotkin campaigns in Michigan.
And even though I love Halloween - the atmosphere at this time of year is always charged.
I agree with you about the body's memory - it definitely remembers trauma - it stores it.
I am so glad that you were able to restore your house - not much can match the destruction of a hurricane.
Anyway take care, and I hope that you have a wonderful Halloween.
When I was a kid my grandparents used to stay at a an old rooming house/hotel on Rockaway Beach on the summer. I stayed there with them a few times and loved the boardwalk.
Adding an additional btw....I love the look of the Rockaway house. It was actually my intention to go and check out Rockaway Beach this summer until my ankle sidelined me. I definitely will next year.
Also remembering this time 12 years ago when it was decidedly chilly and we had no power. Would have been more bearable if we had the current temperatures!
Thank you for sharing your experience with Sandy. I was very tuned in to this discussion, and I’m restraining myself from jumping all over the replies like a fly at a cookout. I am in Florida, so at least we expect this sort of thing.
The fear and the exhaustion momentarily give way to an animal elation when the storm has passed. When the wind dies down enough for the gulls to scream and dance, I come outside to see how much of a joke that Mother Nature has made of me this time.
Hi Patti,
We just had a powerful typhoon here in Taiwan yesterday--apparently the strongest in some years and also to appear so late in the season. I was holed up at home with the wife and son (on the 4th floor, mind you) and it was constant battering of wind and rain throughout the day. Loose bricks and mortar would occassionally blow down and clatter loudly on thick plastic awnings below. I had wanted to go out and take a walk--don't much like being stuck at home all day--but when I saw some of that debris blown loose with my own eyes, I thought better of it. My wife and son were already determined to grab me by the legs and hold on tight to keep me from going out, bless 'em. Thankfully, I'm not really so foolish; I was just hoping there would be a lull at some point. It didn't calm down until very late last night. Thankfully, the damage was minimal compared to what Sandy did or what happened in Spain this week.
Yes, there's little doubt in mind the body has memory. Are you familiar with the Alexander technique? It takes the position that tension in the body, particularly habitual tension, is rooted in psychological tension, what is termed the psycho-physical relationship, if I remember correctly. I've also read, as others here likely have, that people who receive organ transplants have experiences that support the idea of a direct psycho-physical relationship and/or memory existing throughout the body. And of course, there's the concept of muscle memory bandied about by musicians and athletes alike.
When I did my senior composition recital at university, I built it around my experience in Ghana. Due to the experiences I had at the time, including dreams, family stories, and various memories, I wondered if genetic memory was not also a possibility. I hadn't yet started studying Buddhism, but I was familiar with the idea of past lives, rebirth and reincanation--I had been intrigued ever since my dad told me what David Crosby's "Deja Vu" was about. I don't claim to know that such things exist with certainty, but I believe in the possibility or that at least these ideas do manifest themselves in very tangible ways. I also believe they tell us how very little we really know about ourselves, and that the undiscovered country is a place within us rather than without.
Spin, spin, spin--spinning out a little yarn.
I hope you don't mind, Patti; thanks as always.
The body indeed has a memory.
I did not live in NY when Sandy hit, but I remember exactly where I was & who I was with when I watched with horror the images on TV as she advanced. She was a monster in fury. I couldn't imagine how anything would survive. And oh, gosh....I had no idea about that wonder of a boardwalk. Teak. Simply Wow.
Her name was Sandy.
I have friends in the beautiful mountains and city of Asheville, NC where I used to live...a place I had a decades-long relationship to... that I know will say for decades hence "Her name was Helene." The force of nature, an apt phrase for something so fierce it buries entire buildings under mud & water, rips giant trees from the ground, wipes complete towns from their foundations, sends them into the rivers along with the asphalt streets that ran thru them.
The body has a memory, even from afar.
The body has a memory.
I had a cough that turned into a sinus infection and it seems to be everywhere so do be careful. Have they rebuilt the boardwalk? Now poor Spain has had flooding. I live in a tiny house on a lake in Maine and fear flooding.
Trauma does stay in the body, in the cells, I have read.
Yes, it does seem that the body has a memory. There are day you can breathe in and out and be transported to a day and time that still resonates a memory. I believe that, too. Thank you for this story and for the reminiscence. I had no idea that the boardwalk was gone. So many memories of escaping the heat and sun by slipping under the boardwalk, and luxuriating in the cool sand for a while. Transistor radio. Your little cottage seems the perfect haven......thank you for sharing this memory with us.
Thank you for these thoughts, dear Patti. Your little house looks like a perfect haven. Thanks for sharing its picture. I'm so glad you could have it repaired so beautifully. Now when I board your M Train I'll think of you woolgathering by the Ocean while sipping coffee on your stoop. 💙
Hi Patti, i believe thebody has a memory. The water in the body has a memory and that bodily, water register everything. Good and traumatic events.
A little late, but boy do I remember Sandy. I live in Rumson, NJ which is between 2 rivers and Sandy Hook and Sea Bright on the ocean are just across the river. I remember so many boats on people’s front lawns when the water receded! We walked to the bridge to Sea Bright and Sandy Hook, which are basically a barrier island that just into the Atlantic across from Brooklyn, and the one road, Ocean Ave., was nothing but sand. The ocean breached the very high sea wall, spilled over and retook the barrier island before returning to itself, but not without destroying every home, business and road in its way. I never saw anything even remotely close. And because the waters, either from the sea or the brackish rivers, were salty, so many homes had to be entirely pulled down and started over. I also remember that Halloween in my neighborhood, which was supposed to be cancelled, but we all came together with candles and bonfires and dressed up so our children could have Halloween. We had so much fun despite no power (which for us was out for just over 2 weeks).
really loved this.
and 100% agree with you about the body/memory.
xox
hola Patti, same happened here in Spain yesterday. Called La Dana, an extreme weather event resulting in many deaths and massive destruction. We are ok here in Barcelona, fortunately. The president, Pedro Sanchez, has declared 3 days of mourning. Red alerts continue in parts of the country, as the instability continues.
I just reread that chapter. It was so evocative of memory and how things appear to us triggered by seemingly unrelated events. Brava!
It’s nearly midnight as I listened to your story. I too have experienced body-memory. Usually begins with a dream fragment that lingers upon waking. Thank you for sharing your feelings & thoughts with us. The story of your little house is one of my favorites. Recently reread it, actually. Thank you.
Thanks for the check in. Always so good to hear your voice, Patti, you always raise my spirits, which have been a bit frayed with the Election. I've been canvassing for the Harris and Slotkin campaigns in Michigan.
And even though I love Halloween - the atmosphere at this time of year is always charged.
I agree with you about the body's memory - it definitely remembers trauma - it stores it.
I am so glad that you were able to restore your house - not much can match the destruction of a hurricane.
Anyway take care, and I hope that you have a wonderful Halloween.
Good night and sweet dreams from Detroit.
🎃🎃🎃
When I was a kid my grandparents used to stay at a an old rooming house/hotel on Rockaway Beach on the summer. I stayed there with them a few times and loved the boardwalk.
Adding an additional btw....I love the look of the Rockaway house. It was actually my intention to go and check out Rockaway Beach this summer until my ankle sidelined me. I definitely will next year.
Also remembering this time 12 years ago when it was decidedly chilly and we had no power. Would have been more bearable if we had the current temperatures!
Thank you for sharing your experience with Sandy. I was very tuned in to this discussion, and I’m restraining myself from jumping all over the replies like a fly at a cookout. I am in Florida, so at least we expect this sort of thing.
The fear and the exhaustion momentarily give way to an animal elation when the storm has passed. When the wind dies down enough for the gulls to scream and dance, I come outside to see how much of a joke that Mother Nature has made of me this time.