MEme, my alter ego M.E. (CFS) & me

A meme is "an idea, behavior, or style that spreads from person to person within a culture". 

A memeacts as a unit for carrying cultural ideas, symbols, ...

But, my MEme is my alter ego who travelled the world for me to friends, family and strangers when I was housebound in the early years of illness (ME/CFS). She started her --- our--- travels in 2001. Long before the meme's becoming a trend!

She travelled by post, armed with a diary and disposable camera. This was years before digital cameras, smart phones and social media. Whoever had Meme would write in the dairy what "we" had done, and took photos.

When the diaries returned to me, I remember lying in bed, and REALLY feeling that I was looking back at my own adventures.
It was powerful.
It still is.

MEme has her own blog where a few of her adventures are documented. Travels to Holland, Israel, Eirtrea, Ireland and Canada, that I can add more of her diary pages there, now it is easier to take a photo with my smart phone and upload the images. In the past I had to scan, and edit the images. I ran out of steam to do that. Other travels were to Chile, Australia, Morocco, UK, Yugoslavia ...

MEme having a bath before travelling to Holland

MEme is on the road again.
She visited Eimear in Loughrea, Ireland during February, and she took off for a visit to my childhood friend Henneke in Holland a few days ago.

Corina and Henneke in 2011

Henneke and I met up again in 2011, after decades of not having seen each other. I had moved to Ireland in 1989. But we probably saw each other last in the late 70's.
We met in secondary school and we suggested to our classmates that we were twins but brought up in different families...

Anyway. We made contact again after Henneke found me on the Internet. We started writing letter- the ones that arrive in the post- and during one visit to Holland in 2011, we met in a seaside town not far from where we grew up.
For years afterward I was not able to visit Holland again, and so have not visit my friend in her house.

Now "I" can.
MEme will go in my place, and I am very much looking forward to it!

MEme ready for travel

Further reading and links

• MEme's Blog