What is your earliest memory? How old were you at the time?

I was just reading the Pope Francis thread and I realized that I can remember the visit of John Paul II to my hometown in 2003. I was 2 years and 9 months old at the time, the Popemobile was driving through the street towards the cathedral, barricades were along the road and I remember my dad was holding me on his shoulders, everyone including me had small Vatican yellow white flags that they were waving. Everything before and after is very foggy though.

It isn't a complete memory only small glimpses of a few moments but still crazy to think memory can go back that far.

How about you?

Edited August 6, 20232 yr by mystery

I was like 3 or 4 years old, waking up just in time to watch Elmo on TV 

Edited August 6, 20232 yr by Zeferino

choking on a coin when i was like 3 years old 

Falling down the stairs when I was like 1 or 2. Have the scar to prove it. Also I don’t remember a lot from pre-school except this ******* who shoved me one day and I fell and started bleeding everywhere that one is more vivid of course 

I remember waking up when I was three and going over to my parents room. Such a mundane thing to remember and yet I do for some reason. It wasn't any special thing or anything but it's the first moment I felt alive.

Edited August 6, 20232 yr by schnetzka

going to the beach with my parents and being afraid to go anywhere near the water or to get on a ferry to visit a nearby island because i was afraid sharks would jump out of the ocean and eat me. i think i was 2 or 3 

gaga having a #1 song 

Waking up in a car going to the hospital, I was probably 1-2 years old

Getting breastfed by my mother.

Edited August 6, 20232 yr by DeepEnd

What we think are our earliest memories are what our family members told us about past events and we drew pictures of them later in our heads. Most children don't have actual memories of events before the ages of 4-5. Like my grandma kept telling me a story of me feeding a squirrel in the snow with grandpa and I had a vivid picture of it in my head. But my grandpa died when I was 4 and later in life I realised that I don't have a single memory of him whatsoever. I know him from pictures, but I can't recall any actual memories of him. So that squirrel story was clearly implanted there for me by grandma and I mistook it for a memory. 

I have just one memory from being an actual baby: my mother was carrying me on her back in the elevator, and I somehow remember focusing on all the ads that were placed inside the elevator.

2 minutes ago, =NEX= said:

What we think are our earliest memories are what our family members told us about past events and we drew pictures of them later in our heads. Most children don't have actual memories of events before the ages of 4-5. Like my grandma kept telling me a story of me feeding a squirrel in the snow with grandpa and I had a vivid picture of it in my head. But my grandpa died when I was 4 and later in life I realised that I don't have a single memory of him whatsoever. I know him from pictures, but I can't recall any actual memories of him. So that squirrel story was clearly implanted there for me by grandma and I mistook it for a memory. 

It is very much possible to remember fragments of memories before that time though. The story that I described in the OP was actually something that I brought up to my parents later on instead of them telling that to me, it was never mentioned outside of that. There are other fragments like that from other times later on but this is the earliest one I can recall.

You are correct in the sense that this isn't full blown memory where you recall everything, that doesn't start until much later on. Bits and pieces are possible.

Visiting my mom at the hospital when she had my brother.

Edited August 6, 20232 yr by Virgos Groove

Literally 9/11.

Don't know specifically the 1st, but I remember some things around the age of 3/4

 

Like going to preschool, one of the 1st songs I liked (In Da Club - 50 Cent), the original Cartoonnetwork logo etc

I can remember short moments of my life from childhood pictures, I think my earliest memory is being like 3 years old, way overdressed for winter and being held by a stranger woman who I didn't like or know at all. It's from a picture but I can vividly remember the entire situation I have quite a lot of memories starting from age 4

when I was 2 in my playpen watching the pool being built outside 

I was only a few months old when I fell out of bed and hit my head very hard. I remember the blow, the sensation, the pain, my parents rushing to help me.... When I told them all the details they could not believe it because I was a newborn. I wonder if all my mental problems were caused by that blow 

Probably 1995.  I kinda remember meeting my first friend in kinda garden. We were friends till just 2022

When my mom’s water broke. From outside her womb I could hear the musical vibrations of Madonna. 

I was 2. I remember crawling and watching my folks take apart my crib. 

I was 3/4, at daycare, and I remember one of the ladies there said she was a red head. I argued that no she wasn’t, it’s orange hair. She said no I’m a red head, and I ripped a piece of red construction paper out of a booklet and held it next to her and said no, it’s orange 

 

at that same daycare I remember picking up a toy basketball hoop, I believe it was fisher price, flipping it upside down and carrying it around like an umbrella singing “you are my sunshine” 

 

Im sure I have other memories of about that time but those two have always stuck out the most to me 

2 hours ago, =NEX= said:

What we think are our earliest memories are what our family members told us about past events and we drew pictures of them later in our heads. Most children don't have actual memories of events before the ages of 4-5. Like my grandma kept telling me a story of me feeding a squirrel in the snow with grandpa and I had a vivid picture of it in my head. But my grandpa died when I was 4 and later in life I realised that I don't have a single memory of him whatsoever. I know him from pictures, but I can't recall any actual memories of him. So that squirrel story was clearly implanted there for me by grandma and I mistook it for a memory. 

***** u just made me realize the vivid memories I have as a toddler are also stories my mother has told me  

My earliest memories was being at the Bronx Zoo and I remember being potty trained, I don't remember which one was first, I was a toddler for both

Either 9/11 or the whenever, wherever video