Mnemotope as a Safe Place: The Wind Phone in Japan

There is a conceptual discrepancy between the expression “space of memory” and “place of memory.” In a different realm, the same seems to happen with the terms “safe space” and “safe place.” Coexisting but distinct worlds are explored in this article through the lens of the safe mnemotope: a place where memories have a fertile ground to settle and condense, where people find a safe dimension to externalize their inner emotions connected to the past. Based on a personal encounter with the Wind Phone in Japan, the article identifies some of the attributes that can make a place of memory a safe place, proposing them as initial guidelines to inspire the recognition and enhancement of realities that support the expression of complex feelings, providing a refuge where individuals can confront with their grief.