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PhiloQuests: the day of loss

12. Nighttime Notebook

Fixated on forgetting

  

Objective: To reflect on your incredible Philoquester experience to identify its key moments!

Duration: 10 to 20 minutes

Material: 

  • A sheet of paper
  • Pencils, eraser 

Instructions: 

  1. Think back on today. Think about the different thinking and creative activities you completed today.
  2. Answer the following reflection questions:

    • How did you live loss today? 
    • What was your highlight today?
    • What challenge did you face today? 
    • What lesson did you learn today?
    • What is your gratitude today?

...

Bonus: Is forgetting a memory a form of loss? To explore this idea, give yourself a challenge: thinking about your life right now, choose one thing you'd really like to remember and one thing you'd really like to have forgotten a year from now. What strategies will you use to remember the one thing and forget the other? Finally, ask yourself these questions: Can forgetting be a positive force in your life or in society? Is it helpful to think about the past? Would you be the same person if you had different memories? Why or why not?

Is forgetting a kind of lost?

Tricks for tots: If you prefer, try another version of the challenge: Choose an object near you. Look at it for a few moments to memorize as many things as you can and then put it away by hiding it behind your back or by covering it. Now try as hard as you can to forget everything you know about the object. Then ask yourself the following questions:

  • Is there anything written or drawn on the object? If so, what is it?
  • Does the object have a particular texture?
  • Does the object have traces of wear and tear, or stains?
  • Does the object make a particular noise when handled?
Now do the opposite: Try to visualize the object in your mind in as much detail as possible. Then look at the object again and compare it to what you imagined. Finally, ask yourself these questions: Can you choose what you remember and what you forget? Are there things that you must remember? Why or why not?
Tips for teens: How has your understanding of loss evolved over the course of this unforgettable philosophical quest? Can you identify the specific experiences that have changed your view of loss? You can use your answers to the questions above to reflect on your experience.

Share your creative reflections by sending them via email.
Include photos of your projects and notes of your thoughts, as well as your first name and your age!

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