Hello ,
Most of us regularly lose things: keys, wallets, TV remotes, glasses, and phones. Some of us are more prone to misplacing things than others. It’s not surprising that men are twice as likely to lose their phones than women.
One study concluded that the average person misplaces nine things a day and spends an average of fifteen minutes looking for lost items.
Why does this happen? What is the psychology and science behind it? It comes down to a breakdown of attention and memory. When we misplace our belongings, "we fail to activate the part of our brain responsible for encoding what we're doing."
The hippocampus part of our brain is responsible for taking a snapshot and preserving the memory in a set of neurons that can be activated later. We lose things when we do not have a clear reference point of when or where we put down objects like our keys or glasses.
One of the ways we can improve our memory is through practicing mindfulness. We do this by stepping back and calming our thoughts, focusing on being present in the moment. (1)
"You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you." Isaiah 26:3
We can all be forgetful from time to time, but keeping our minds focused on trusting in a divine power can certainly move us in the right direction of a settled mindset.
Have a great day and God bless!
Pastor Mike / The Open Word
