[Grammar] My earliest memory of my mother is/was

[Oceanlike]

In writing a narrative, I am unsure if I should use is/was in the following sentence:

My (The?) earliest memory of my mother is/was watching her sew late into the night.

Thank you. :-D

 

[probus]

It depends on the yet unknown context. If you intend to continue is the present tense use is; if in the past tense use was.

 

[Tdol]

My (The?)

I would use my as it is your memory, and if you used the definite article, it would be inaccurate- some people would almost certainly have different first memories of her.

 

[emsr2d2]

I would use "My earliest memory of my mother is ...". Unless something changes and you remember something from even longer ago, then it is (and will remain) your earliest memory of her.