"I remember" with Joe Brainard and Georges Perec (Writing Workshop)

[Vincent Mespoulet]

Hi everyone,

This is the week-end, and i have a good litterary game to suggest you... Rather than to determine if a memory is good or bad, positive or negative, let me introduce the project of two great writers to you... In the early 70's, Joe Brainard (1942-1994) wrote his "I Remember", described by Paul Auster as "a masterpiece . . . one of the few totally original books I have ever read,". One of my favourite french writer, Georges Perec (1936-1982), read this book and gave, a few years later, his own version of his memories... Geoges Perec was the genius of the words, able to write a 300 pages lipogram novel ("La Disparition", An Avoid" in english without "e" letter), or his amazing palindroma of... 1247 words !!! He was an influent member of OuLiPo = "workshop of potential literature" with many examples of writing constraints.

So i come back to "I remember": try to write 10 important "I remember" in your life between 7 and 25 years old, and share with us ;-)

Here are my ten memories:

1. I remember the day when my father had threatened me to bring me to Police Office to test lie detector: i had stolen around 15$ and i have hidden the banknote under a mirror frame. But i don't remember why i had stolen this money...
2. I remember my father asked me once to strangle a still alive and wounded quail during a hunting day. I did it crying a lot.
3. I remember when i heard secretly teachers talking together in an undertone and saying that the father of my best friend had commited suicide because of the war in Algeria, ten years after the end of this war. I was deeply in pain for seven days, since the moment when my best friend had disappeared with no reasons nor explanations... I didn't know what was this war and i think that's the day i have decided to study History.
4. I remember when my mother went after me with a broom. I closed the door of my bedroom. There were many holes on this door.
5. I remember the day in Brighton, UK when I have nearly fallen accidentally in the sea from a chalk cliff
6. I remember that I think that my first memory is a day when I removed thorns to a rose in a garden
7. I remember that my very first girl friend had green eyes and big breast
8. I remember that i have smoked my first cigarette when i was 11 years old, in a cave with my friends Thierry and Christophe.
9. I remember my last love night with Jocelyne in Istanbul, after offering her as break-up gift a wonderful golden necklace i had bought in a souk at Jeddah.
10. I remember that Yupah from Ayuttaya often told me that i was like a butterfly. She was right.

[Andrada M.]

I think that this subject is an interesting one... I know it is hard, I have to work a lot but this is my passion and I never give up. It's hard to practice all the day... I understand for your son it was to hard, belive me I know.. I'm sorry for him, he is a good fighter.. But it was his chance and if he is happy, this is the most important think...

[Andrada M.]

Shotokan is a school of karate, developed from various martial arts by Gichin Funakoshi (1868–1957) and his son Yoshitaka Funakoshi (1906–1945). Gichin Funakoshi is widely recognized as having brought karate from Okinawa to mainland Japan, although Kenwa Mabuni, Chōki Motobu, and other Okinawan karate masters were actively teaching karate in Japan prior to this point.
Shotokan is one of the four traditional karate styles, the others being Gōjū-ryū, Shitō-ryū, and Wadō-ryū. Although it began as a unified karate school that developed into the Japan Karate Association, Shotokan now exists as several independent organizations.
We have our federation in Romania FRKM, is a strong federation with a strong structure. Our sensei is Adrian Popescu Sacele.

[Andrada M.]

Ellen, thank you for your appreciations. I am national champion in karate shotokan, a great art, a special one. In fact, I think that this sport is helping me to see the life in another perspective. The karate is a way to perfection.
And about remembers, I live with my remembers every day...Cause I know, the remembers are a part of me, of you, of every person... We are made by the same material like the dreams...

[Vincent Mespoulet]

You have nice memories, Andrada. I think it's important to remember from time to time, sweet and bitter memories. I'm very older than you, so i know that our behavior, sometimes, is greatly influenced by insifignicant details of our personal life when we were very very young. Being adult is also a kind of sad feeling about what we lost from our childhood: children are both grave and carefree. Maybe you can copy and paste your memories inside the discussion "i remember" into the Writing Workshop group.

[Andrada M.]

Remebers... Sweet and old remembers..Do you know something? When I read your memories, I felt some special thing... It's hard to look back and find this old memories in a corner from your room, in the flower of your garden or in the eyes of a special person... I remember that I think that my first memory is a storm in the night. Thunder like mountains blowing up. Lightning liching the navy-blue sky. I was with my mother I think so...I was trying for the first time to catch a rainbow cry while my mother push me in the house... I will never forget the rhythm of the sky, the faintness of the first star that I saw in my life... I don't not if it was a star or a light..Whatever, It was my first remember..
I remember the day when my coach smiled at me
and he said to me "You will be a champion!! Cause in your heart you have the most power thing that I ever saw or felt in my life, the wish and the ambition to be simply the best!! I know that you big wish is to be a champion! But first you have to work and never forget "Nothing is imposible" ...And now after many years I feel so special...
I remember the best day in my life...When I was for the first time champion, national champion. I cryed and I run at my couch, I look inside his eyes and I say " Today my dream become truth!! I am the champion! Thank you for all! This is your title, you work. " And in that day I saw for the first time my coach crying.. He was crying for me, cause my dream become truth and his dream was to saw me on the top...