Making Your Own Time Machine

Is it possible to travel back in time? Many experts believe that time is not a straight line, but bends and folds, so it may be possible to step across from one point in time to another.

Travelling back to your own past can be a lot easier than finding a fold in the fabric of time. Just settle down in your favourite armchair and relax. Let your memory do the travelling.

Choose a location from your childhood as a starting point. This could be a house where you lived, or your first school. Begin by imagining you are standing outside the building looking at it. My first home had a large wooden gate set in a fence with a privet hedge inside it. I can see the house name in brass lettering on the top bar of the gate "Randall Holme". A short path, with gardens on each side, led from the gate to the house. There are three steps up to the front door, and a green cast-iron drainpipe is to the left of it.

Imagine the building of your youth in as much detail as you can. What colour was the door? Was the street number painted on, or was it brass or plastic numerals screwed into place? Maybe it didn't have a number at all. How many steps led up to the front door, if any? What type of windows did it have, and how many? Try to picture the house in your mind as vividly as possible, concentrating first on one detail then another. At first, this may take you some time, but with subsequent visits to your past it will become easier and you will find you can 'see' the image in your mind in greater detail. Suddenly, one day, you might recall that one window was different from the others because that was the one you broke playing football. Remember what your mother said when she found out!

Once you have recalled as much as possible about the exterior of the property, you can venture inside. But first, what type of key did you have to use to open the door, and where did you keep it? Was it on a keyring in your pocket, attached to your belt, or was it hidden under the third plant pot from the left in the porch?

Inside, look around. Do you remember the colour of the carpet, the type of wallpaper and the furnishings in the hallway? Take your time, recreating the scene in as much detail as possible. You can always come back another time to complete your tour.

Use all of your senses. Can you smell your mother's home cooking, and hear her voice? What incidents happened in the room you are standing in? Were they good or bad? Try to recall happy memories, you want this to be a pleasant experience, one you will return to again and again. How did you feel when you walked into the room the first time? Try to recreate that mood.

At the end of your trip back in time you should feel happy and relaxed, and looking forward to your next adventure aboard your time machine. Happy travelling!