Fleeting notes

A fleeting note records a thought shortly after having it.

The etymology of fleeting:

early 13c., "fickle, shifting, unstable," from Old English fleotende "floating, drifting," later "flying, moving swiftly," from present participle of fleotan "to float, drift, flow" (see fleet (v.)). Meaning "existing only briefly" is from 1560s. 1

Shifting, unstable. A thought from the past does not carry the same meaning in the present. Memory is imperfect and imaginative. Supporting context may be lost.

Floating, drifting. We do not choose our thoughts. We have little control over how we attend to them.

Flying, moving swiftly. Attention and meaning combine into thought. Perception shifts our attention forward. New meaning is identified.

Existing only briefly. Thoughts stay with us for as long as attention and memory allow.