A good things jar
One of my 2014 resolutions was to have a good things jar: a physical place where I could write down the good things that happened throughout the year and where I could watch those happy moments pile up.
On New Year’s Eve, I woke up early: I biked across the Williamsburg Bridge in the dark stillness of the early, early morning and then walked across the Brooklyn Bridge as the sun was rising and then I sat on the waterfront and watched the sunlight glint off the Manhattan skyscrapers. And then I biked back to Williamsburg, and I made a cup of hot tea and I opened up my good things jar. I took the pieces of paper out one by one, reading and remembering and occasionally surprising myself. There were big adventures (Turkey! Avalon! Nicaragua!) and little joys (a productive Sunday, a day of gardening, date nights) and wonderful people (my boyfriend, my group of girlfriends, my newly engaged friends). Between a beautiful sunrise and an intentional morning and a collection of my favorite memories: I don’t think I could have asked for a better end to 2014.
I still keep a gratitude journal and a “hopes and dreams” journal that is filled with inspiring quotes and monthly goals and general musings on how I feel. But the good things jar was such a tangible reminder of all of the good things in my life: it slowly filled up with colorful construction paper on my bedside table, and inspired me to really notice my gratitude. I also used it as a dedicated place for little mementos from the year: my Jersey shore beach tag, an 0ld-school friendship bracelet won in an arcade, ticket stubs.
I loved my 2014 jar so much that I’m doing it again for 2015, and I urge you to do the same. All you need is a mason jar, some construction paper and a pen. It doesn’t have to be Pinterest-worthy or fancy or even that big of a deal: you just need to write things down and put them somewhere. Write down the big things and the little things, the happy moments and the inside jokes. And then on December 31, 2015: open it up and savor it all.
Happy 2015! Cheers to many good things happening this year!
p.s. I just started this Q&A a day:Five-Year Journal yesterday: I have a feeling the next five years are going to be full of adventure and change and excitement! Does anyone else do a one-line journal like this?
