Hippocampus and Helminths.

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Memories. 

Yes, memories. Stored in a dimension unbeknownst to man - yet, wrecking havoc and joy in an otherwise colourless world. Like where are these memories even arising from? Is there a genie inside each of our brains, that gets released when the slightest sensation of a place or smell rubs some Aladdin lamp off? Is there really a Cartesian theatre in our deep abyss of mind that puts up a Broadway show every now and then to garner claps or stones, smiles or tears, depending on the script? And then, it dawned on me. How strikingly similar they were to leeches. 

 No, I’m not kidding. The very same - black, kind of slimy, totally ugly, but the kinda sorta useful helminth.

Consciously recalled memories are like consciously placed leeches on our body. The very same ‘medical procedure’ that costs a buttload to put some worms on our skins to suck out the bad blood. Well, Taylor Swift will be interested. Anyway, these type of memories help open the curtains to let the sun back into our neuronal altars and help flush out the bad toxin from the system. They are the cocaine on a sunny day and a Prozac on a cloudy one. A happy song. Fresh aroma of the morning coffee. A best friend’s hug. A childhood photo. Your pet dog’s welcome. Anything can do the trick.

But, what happens when your mind is out in the woods and a wild memory latches on to you? 

 An uncalled guest in your head. An invisible ninja, if you will. It initially stays there - unseen and unheard - slowly and cautiously working its way into you. You start feeling anxious, but you wouldn’t know why. You would want to cry your eyes out, but your rational self would be confused about the unavailability of a reason. Then, you start taking matters in your hand. You start searching within you for the source. You sieve through your thoughts. You flash a torch at every corner of your mind. Then, at long last, you would find it. Hidden among the best ones, it would lie - its place rightly sought - but only in the past. The once best memory would have now turned into a parasite, slowly feeding on the other good ones, growing only to occupy the entire mind. Removing it is no easy job, either. A parasite like a leech doesn’t come off when willed to. One should set fire to it to tease it out from the skin.

Alas, but you can’t set fire to your mind - only your soul.

So long, and thanks for all the views.


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