Clifton Fadiman Quotes

A retentive memory may be a good thing, but the ability to forget is the true token of greatness.

I should remember more, and I have a pretty good memory.

My memory's bad!

You never realize what a good memory you have until you try to forget something.

The things that have come into being change continually. The man with a good memory remembers nothing because he forgets nothing.

I forget a book as soon as I finish writing it, which is not always a good thing.

I've actually got quite a good memory. I've good recall. It's often things which other people might not notice.

Short term memory is not good.

People always complain about their memories, never about their minds.

Forget whatever should be forgotten, so that you can remember what should be remembered

I've always been forgetful.

My memory seems to be holding on quite well. There is no reason why it shouldn't if you keep training it.

Selective amnesia is a good thing to have. So is good focus.

Estragon: I'm like that. Either I forget right away or I never forget.

Few have wished for memory so much as they have longed for forgetfulness.

Women forget all the things they don't want to remember, and remember everything they don't want to forget.

Just remember that the things you put into your head are there forever, he said. You might want to think about that. You forget some things, dont you? Yes. You forget what you want to remember and you remember what you want to forget.

Our memory is childish and it saves only what we need.

I have a bad memory for facts.

If you can't remember the small things, how are you going to remember the big things? The mind is a real dangerous neighborhood to travel by ourselves.

I have a remarkable memory; I forget everything. It is wonderfully convenient. It is as though the world were constantly renewing itself for me.

To my mind this is what shamanic training must really be, is mnemonic training. If you want to bring the stuff back you have to train yourself to bring it back.

Remembering is the most overrated thing. Forgetting is far superior.

Normal people have nothing to forget.

To the best of my recollection, I must recall on my memory, I cannot remember