The Gratitude Jar

Pinterest has definitely broadened my horizons over the past few months.  I'm not as active with it as some people I know (JSD!) but I love that I can find inspiration anywhere on the internet, pin it, and save it in an on-line bulletin board for future reference.  It is a wonderful thing.  You can create boards for any interest at all -- it's all your own design.

One of the most inspiring ideas I pinned is a gratitude jar.  Starting on January 1st, at the end of each day I jot down one wonderful thing that happened that day.  Just one.  I will do that for the entire year.  If I have a bad day or find myself in a crummy mood, I will go to that jar and pull out a few slips of paper and remind myself of the good things.  How simple is that?  And the good thing could have happened to me, to someone I love, or just out in the world.  It doesn't have to be so ego-centric.  Of course, the dark side of my sense of humor also imagined a very different jar where frustrations could be accumulated, but that was just a fleeting thought!  Who'd want to look back at that?  Not me!  Kind of defeats the purpose.

So, with a positive attitude, I took a very large Mason jar that had previously been intended for collecting change, and it has been re-purposed.  Entries aren't long paragraphs -- most notes are one-liners of something worth remembering.

The nice thing about this is that the notes are completely personal and private.  No need to share my thoughts on social media or anywhere.  So even though I am using a blog to explain my gratitude jar, each little entry will be mine and mine alone.  In this age where so many are exposing each and every thought to the world, I like this little bit of privacy.

Happy New Year, and if you are inspired to create your own gratitude jar, that'd be a wonderful thing!