My earliest memory probably occurred when I was approximately 1 year old, but it was definitely less than 2 as my sister hadnt been born yet. This particular memory was me riding on the Dumbo ride during my first visit to Disney World. I am riding with my parents and my grandfather, and my grandfather is holding me as I look over the side at everything spinning around us. I remember somewhat thinking that everything looked cool and blurred, but this could just be me projecting my own thoughts on the memory; on the whole I more see them memory in the third person, with the image facing me, some distance in front of the moving cart. I really dont remember much in terms of any measure of identity, so it was definitely different than it is now, if it was even present. Interestingly, I can also vaguely recall seeing a photo of roughly the same perspective, so its possible that I am subconsciously combining parts of this memory with the idea of the photo
The earliest back I can go while still feeling completely like me was when I was maybe a bit younger than 2, and I am sitting on the floor in the kitchen watching my dad spackle a hole in the wall. I remember feeling bored but that the weird spackle substance looked cool and soft.
It is interesting how you see yourself in your memory, as opposed to visualizing the memory in first person. You may have seen some pictures of being in Disney World, which greatly influenced your recollection of being there. But I, too, had a similar memory of being in Disney World at a very young age. However, the part that I remembered most about my experiences in Disney World was taking a picture with a Minnie Mouse character. A few years back, I had found that exact picture with Minnie Mouse, which made me recall that memory even more.
I think it is also interesting that you saw your memory in the third person. Many times when I look back on my memories, I look back on them in third person because I was influenced by pictures of videos that my parents took. I think I do the same thing you said about combining the memory with outside stories or pictures to create a full memory.
