In an age where digital data is commonplace, 3-d television is just around the corner and a lifetime of memories are available at the touch of an ergonomic button, I am naught but a Luddite. A technological throwback.

I do not long for my precious memories to be stored on high density DVD and played back with an accompanying dreamy soundtrack. Nor do I have a catalogued and indexed mini-SD tape collection with my children's birthdays in chronological order.
No, I have something far more technologically advanced. My mind's eye.

Before you cut and paste this article into your iPhone for later perusal, consider this. If we, as individuals, are afforded the luxury of total digital recall, then primarily from a neuro-cognitive perspective, we are not regularly exercising that part of the brain (the hippocampus), that allows us to recall these memories effectively. In other words, we're getting lazy. Why bother expending energy recalling that camping trip in year 12 when your best friend realised he had pitched his tent on a fire ant's nest when you can just pull up a few photos instead?
The difference? There's no feeling. No involvement. It's a 2-dimensional image, and unfortunately, so are the resulting emotions.

So you see, I want to hold fast to my version; the real 3-D, surround sound, ultra-high definition version that will be forever embedded in my memories.

I fall off my bike. Feel the gravel on my burning hands and see small birds flying across the horizon from where I lay. Best friend dies. Hate the pointed finality of a silently closing door at a church. The rain on my face as we walk to a car. The windows gather condensation as we sit and hold each other in silence. My first kiss. I sit in a darkened basement. Hear the thud of parent's shoes on the wooden floor above, feel my hands shake and see the half-lit face of a doll sitting perched on a rocking chair in the corner.

The ability to be instantly transported to that mental snapshot, with all the sounds, smells, feelings and nuances that made that occasion unforgettable in it's own way, is something we should strive to never lose. For if we lose this, then what is left? A digital representation of ourselves? These memories are what hold us together, create who we are, our reactions, our ideas, our passions.

Consider for a moment the 'Observer Effect' in physics, which states that "the act of observation will make changes on the phenomenon being observed". Being in a situation where someone pauses, tells everyone to wait while they retrieve a camera, effectively kills a beautiful, spontaneous moment.

So next time you want to capture something, don't rely on your digital toys.
Stop, immerse yourself in the moment, take in the sounds, the laughter, the tears and everything in between, and let it become a part of you forever.