Occasionally I hear a senior citizen complain, "I just can't remember names like I used to," or, "I can't remember a thing anymore." Reminds me of a Peanuts cartoon strip I saw some time ago. Charlie Brown says, "My grandfather loves to sing hymns. He can remember the words to over a hundred hymns." Linus asks, "Does he sing in the choir?" Charlie replies, "No, he can't remember where the church is!"

But the problem for many is not that they can't remember, but they can't forget. Psychologists remind us that the past plays a powerful part in how we live our lives in the present. They estimate that we spend as much as 50 percent of our emotional energy trying to repress painful memories. Some of us have had experiences that have traumatized us in some way - and if they have not been softened…