I have done this a few times before, in 2013, 2015, and
2017. I recently sorted out my jars and stashed them at the back of a shelf,
and I’m not getting them down again now to take photos for this blog!
The idea behind the first jar was to document things that
made me happy, made me smile, made me laugh, and made me glad I didn’t succeed in
killing myself whilst in the grips of depression as a teenager. I had some pretty
rough times as a teenager. As a side note, when sorting out jars and things
over the festive period, I also found all the letters from varying doctors and
mental health crisis teams – wow, was I ill. It’s amazing how much you forget,
or electively shut out. I think I have suppressed it because I never want to go
there again, and I don’t want to relive it, and I don’t want to relive it for
anyone else either. It belongs in the past and so it shall stay.
Anyway, back to the jars. I have had depression for as long
as I can remember, but only got diagnosed about 14 years ago. I have been
medicated since about 2006/7. The Good Things jars were a therapy technique. I
would write down little things, and then whenever I had a bout of sadness or full-blown
depression, I could go through the jar and relive the happy things, the Good
Things. I don’t do these jars every year, but over the festive period I felt
that this year would be a good jar year, and so here we are.
All it is, is a kilner jar from Wilkos. I use coloured paper
(also from Wilkos), and I use coloured pens. I like colourful things. It makes
life fun! As an ex-goth, it hurts to say that. I try to write something every
day, but often I forget (story of my life), so I keep a list on my phone and
then write them up in one big session. I put the date on each bit of paper. The
idea is that by the end of the year, I will be struggling to fit any more in
because it’ll be so full. I put personal stuff in, but also things relating to
work, to David, to wider family, and also inside jokes with friends. Sometimes I
print screengrabs of messages off and put them in, and sometimes I print silly
pictures off and put them in too. One of the jars contains a bit of a
dreadlock, and another contains a strip of broomstick lace crochet.
When I did a jar whilst I was uni, lots of people knew about
it and it was their aim to make it into the jar. A lot of them did in the
end. I have a lot of memories stored in jars, and they’ll only ever make any
sense to me. They are a great memory jogger, and a lot of fun to go through.
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| Some of my Good things, so far. |
