--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Memory is a code to who we are, a…" description: "\"Memory is a code to who we are, a collection of not just dates and facts but also of epic emotional struggles, epiphanies, transformations.\" — David Grann" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8b/david-grann-2569_change_memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collect_1000636.jpg" --- # Memory is a code to who we are, a collection of not just… ![“Memory is a code to who we are, a collection of not just dates and facts but also of epic emotional struggles, epiphanies, transformations.” quote by David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8b/david-grann-2569_change_memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collect_1000636.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8b/david-grann-2569_change_memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collect_1000636.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8b/david-grann-2569_change_memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collect_1000636.jpg) > “Memory is a code to who we are, a collection of not just dates and facts but also of epic emotional struggles, epiphanies, transformations.” [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Memory shapes identity beyond facts, encompassing emotional struggles, epiphanies, and transformations that define who we are. **In simple terms:** Memory is more than dates; it includes feelings and change. Key Takeaway Reflect on how memories shape your identity. Themes identity memory personal growth Mood reflective introspective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - personal journaling - educational curricula - family histories Key Concepts psychology neuroscience storytelling self-awareness Questions to Reflect On - What memories have most defined you? - How do you reconcile conflicting memories? A Different Perspective Memory can be unreliable or biased. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Dates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dates/) [Emotional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotional/) [Emotional Struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotional-struggle-227785/) [Emotional Struggles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotional-struggles-2109566/) [Epic Emotional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/epic-emotional-2109565/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Memory Code](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory-code-2109564/) [Programming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/programming/) [Struggles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggles/) [Struggles Epiphanies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggles-epiphanies-2109563/) [Who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/who/) ## Related quotes > [In my experience as a therapist and as a friend, it seems that the majority of the breakup resources available are for women and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-v-gordon/in-my-experience-as-a-therapist-and-as-a-friend-it-seems-that-the/) [Emily V. Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-v-gordon/) > [“if we view difficult emotions as problems to be solved, we will end up looking for answers that will work rather than pursuing relationship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-allender/if-we-view-difficult-emotions-as-problems-to-be-solved-we-will-end-up/) [Dan Allender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-allender/) > [“What is our human dilemma? That the nature of life is problematic. Problems are not an exception; they are the norm. The world offers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karuna-cayton/what-is-our-human-dilemma-that-the-nature-of-life-is-problematic/) [Karuna Cayton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karuna-cayton/) > [“Austen's works have endured because she had a superb narrative technique and a gift for creating characters who feel as real as life itself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syrie-james/austen-s-works-have-endured-because-she-had-a-superb-narrative/) [Syrie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syrie-james/) > [ “\[I\]t seems to me that a lot of the stranger ideas people have about medicine derive from an emotional struggle with the very notion… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-goldacre/i-t-seems-to-me-that-a-lot-of-the-stranger-ideas-people-have-about/) [Ben Goldacre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-goldacre/) > [I have an increasing sense that the most important crisis of our time is spiritual and that we need places where people can grow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/i-have-an-increasing-sense-that-the-most-important-crisis-of-our-time/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Why does it help to read others' stories? It is not only that misery loves company, because (I learned) misery is too self-absorbed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sheff/why-does-it-help-to-read-others-stories-it-is-not-only-that-misery/) [David Sheff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sheff/) > [The military has a very long relationship with Hollywood that dates back to the silent film era.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-turse/the-military-has-a-very-long-relationship-with-hollywood-that-dates/) [Nick Turse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-turse/) > [When I'm with my wife, we go on dates and things like that, take our girls out to do stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-evans/when-i-m-with-my-wife-we-go-on-dates-and-things-like-that-take-our/) [Mike Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-evans/) > [“Okay, okay, you win. One-just one- date. But that's all." She didn't look at Josh, just stalked off toward the nearest exit. "Do you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-harper/okay-okay-you-win-one-just-one-date-but-that-s-all-she-didn-t-look-at/) [Dani Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-harper/) > [Horrible dates are when you're with people who are immature and can't really be comfortable in their own skin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mercer/horrible-dates-are-when-you-re-with-people-who-are-immature-and-can-t/) [James Mercer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mercer/) > [Love is not about sex, going on fancy dates, or showing off. Its about being with a person who makes you happy in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-not-about-sex-going-on-fancy-dates-or-showing-off-its-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When we produced 'Highway,' Imtiaz Ali and I planned it as a quick small experimental film, while we waited for Ranbir Kapoor's dates later…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sajid-nadiadwala/when-we-produced-highway-imtiaz-ali-and-i-planned-it-as-a-quick-small/) [Sajid Nadiadwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sajid-nadiadwala/) > [Exam Warning: Dates in calendar are closer than they appear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/exam-warning-dates-in-calendar-are-closer-than-they-appear/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I once went on a date where the girl drove and so couldn't drink. I was nervous, so drank quite a bit - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-smith/i-once-went-on-a-date-where-the-girl-drove-and-so-couldn-t-drink-i/) [Dan Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-smith/) ## More by David Grann > [“To believe that the Osages survived intact from their ordeal is a delusion of the mind. What has been possible to salvage has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/to-believe-that-the-osages-survived-intact-from-their-ordeal-is-a/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Over the next two decades, the Osage were forced to cede nearly a hundred million acres of their ancestral land, ultimately finding refuge in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/over-the-next-two-decades-the-osage-were-forced-to-cede-nearly-a/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Only in the mid-nineteenth century, after the growth of industrial cities and a rash of urban riots—after dread of the so-called dangerous classes surpassed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/only-in-the-mid-nineteenth-century-after-the-growth-of-industrial/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [I look for stories everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/i-look-for-stories-everywhere/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Emmett White became a firm, even unyielding, sheriff. Still, he showed remarkable consideration toward the people in his custody and insisted on making arrests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyielding-sheriff-still-he-showed/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [My mother doesn't need much sleep. At any hour of the night, you'd wake up, and she'd be reading. She'd read five, six books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/my-mother-doesn-t-need-much-sleep-at-any-hour-of-the-night-you-d-wake/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [The way we live history is not the way historians tell history. Our lives are messy and chaotic and bewildering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/the-way-we-live-history-is-not-the-way-historians-tell-history-our/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Fawcett, who had always found refuge in the natural world, no longer recognized the wilderness of bombed-out villages, denuded trees, craters, and sunbaked skeletons.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/fawcett-who-had-always-found-refuge-in-the-natural-world-no-longer/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Does God think that, because it is raining, I am not going to destroy the world? - Lope de Aguirre after going mad in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/does-god-think-that-because-it-is-raining-i-am-not-going-to-destroy/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“In 1804, a delegation of Osage chiefs met with Jefferson at the White House. He told the navy secretary that the Osage, whose warriors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/in-1804-a-delegation-of-osage-chiefs-met-with-jefferson-at-the-white/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [A lot of the stuff I tweet is out of childlike curiosity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/a-lot-of-the-stuff-i-tweet-is-out-of-childlike-curiosity/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Instead, the terrain looked like Nebraska—perpetual plains that faded into the horizon. When I asked Taukane where the forest was, he said, simply, “Gone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/instead-the-terrain-looked-like-nebraska-perpetual-plains-that-faded/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [I covered Congress, and everyone always wanted me to be a political reporter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/i-covered-congress-and-everyone-always-wanted-me-to-be-a-political/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [For a while, when I got out of college, I tried to write fiction. I'd grown up more around novelists, and my initial attraction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/for-a-while-when-i-got-out-of-college-i-tried-to-write-fiction-i-d/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [One of the nice things about 'The New Yorker' is they let you write stories that sometimes end up almost half a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/one-of-the-nice-things-about-the-new-yorker-is-they-let-you-write/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) [Explore all 160 David Grann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) ## More Change quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) [Phil Hogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-hogan/) > [Nobody can tell me that no changes are necessary in Washington.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-weld/nobody-can-tell-me-that-no-changes-are-necessary-in-washington/) [William Weld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-weld/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [When you walk down the street of Kabul your values for life changes, they do change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-pierre-white/when-you-walk-down-the-street-of-kabul-your-values-for-life-changes/) [Marco Pierre White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-pierre-white/) > [Your world will change whether or not you choose to change, but you have the power to choose it's direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/your-world-will-change-whether-or-not-you-choose-to-change-but-you/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [I hope I continue to evolve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-flair/i-hope-i-continue-to-evolve/) [Charlotte Flair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-flair/) > [“Stay focused on bringing people together and more on positive messaging so that you can be the change you wish to see in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/stay-focused-on-bringing-people-together-and-more-on-positive/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [“After the funeral, my life changed. I felt as if time were suddenly precious, water going down an open drain, and I could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/after-the-funeral-my-life-changed-i-felt-as-if-time-were-suddenly/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Irish research will contribute to global progress and have the potential to help all countries realise the potential of their land sectors in addressing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enda-kenny/irish-research-will-contribute-to-global-progress-and-have-the/) [Enda Kenny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enda-kenny/) > [No man can change himself into anything from sheer reason; he can only change into what he potentially is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/no-man-can-change-himself-into-anything-from-sheer-reason-he-can-only/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) [Browse all 33,920 Change quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Memory is a code to who we are, a collection of not just dates and facts but also of epic emotional struggles, epiphanies, transformations.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David Grann" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collection-of-not-just-dates-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Change" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collection-of-not-just-dates-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8b/david-grann-2569_change_memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collect_1000636.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8b/david-grann-2569_change_memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collect_1000636.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8b/david-grann-2569_change_memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collect_1000636.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Memory is a code to who we are, a collection of not just dates and facts but also of epic emotional…” — David Grann", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "David Grann", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Memory is a code to who...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collection-of-not-just-dates-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/memory-is-a-code-to-who-we-are-a-collection-of-not-just-dates-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```