Listen to and download the track here
This is the first song from The Home Project. The project was conceived as way of exploring and documenting how we feel about home, from physical buildings to emotional and spiritual ties. I collected interviews from a diverse group and created artistic representations of these discussions. Names have been changed or abbreviated for confidentiality.
Where do all the memories go? is based on a TG’s story. She grew up in a house with her parents and grandmother and describes home as being the people she loved. When TG was a young child, her grandmother tragically passed away, and later her parents also died. She considers home to be the geographical place where they were, and her memories are centred around her grandmother working away in the kitchen.
TG went on to tell me that she has the APOE4 gene which causes Alzheimer’s disease, so preserving her memories has become imperative. She describes
“The memory is like an onion, with outer layers being added later. Alzheimer’s seems to strip off the outer layers, leaving the earliest memories intact, at least until the last stages. Therefore, Alzheimer’s sufferers remember their home as being their childhood home.”
Therefore, her home has become more important to her since the possibility of losing her most recent memories has arisen. For those who develop the disease, their earliest memories go on to frame their contemporary life; losing consciousness of the present day means living in life that is long in the past, a historical illusion. Memories become more precious when they are under threat. What TG describes is that part of who she is, has been created by these experiences and memories. The possibility of losing her memory undermines both her history and her future.
It occurred to me where do all the memories go? Even if we don’t suffer from cognitive decline, where do all our memories go when we die? It’s not just people we remember but the sound of the stairs creaking, the smell of the Sunday roast, the pen mark on the lounge wallpaper. The sounds, smells and imperfections are preserved as well as the laughter, joy, sadness and grief. For many of us, a lifetime of memories will live on in others, whether it is family, friends, work colleagues, we all have a collective consciousness from being together.
This is song is just small prelude to a larger topic but can be used for discussion and understanding on memory issues and the importance of having a good home experience at some point in our lives.
It was a privilege to present TG’s story in this song. Thank you.
Where do all the memories go?
Last night I dreamed of grandma, mum and dad
And our red front door
Small rooms, big dreams
That brighten up our home
I hope I won’t forget this love
Where do all the memories go?
Where do all the memories go?
When you mind starts to fade
Where do all the memories go?
Where do all the memories go?
As the years are stripped away
Your smile, you kiss
That was my first home
Where the laughter flowed
Chipped paint, finger prints
Stories etched in walls
I recall every mark
Where do all the memories go?
Where do all the memories go?
When you mind starts to fade
Where do all the memories go?
Where do all the memories go?
As the years are stripped away
Every stair and every creak
Every wall and every crack
Every door and every pane
Every light and every shade
Every hope and every fear
Every smile and every tear
Every laugh and every cry
Every shrug and every sigh
Where do all the memories go?
Where do all the memories go?
When you mind starts to fade
Where do all the memories go?
Where do all the memories go?
As the years are stripped away
©2026 Words and music by Helen Sanderson White. All rights reserved.
Listen to and download the track here
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog! It takes a range of resources to provide a service like this, if you would like to contribute to my work, please feel free to make a donation via Ko-Fi here.
