Gratitude Jar: What, Why and How?

Keeping a gratitude jar is a great activity to practice thankfulness and mindfulness. I started this habit in the beginning of 2019 and it has been going on up to this day. I got the inspiration from Jay Shetty, he's a former monk and a professional coach of mindfulness. At the end of 2018, he posted about gratitude jar on his Instagram and I thought that it's a good way to practice gratitude, so I started to make one. Little did I know, this particular activity that I initially did just for fun, has also hugely affected me on so many aspects of my life. In this article, I'm gonna share all about gratitude jar and how it has positively transformed me.

What is a gratitude jar?

Gratitude jar literally means a jar which contains gratitude message. It has the same purpose as gratitude journal, but in a jar form. It's a great activity to practice gratitude act.

Why do I start this habit?

Okay, this might get a little too personal. My reason for doing this is mainly because I once had a deflating moment in my life where I started to lose confidence, feel insecure and anxious all the time. It was about two years ago when I experienced so many unfortunate events and also had major breakouts (not breakup ya) which made it even worse. I had to deal with everything that happened by myself while still keeping it cool on the outside. Because at that time I couldn't tell anyone about it, so I kept it to myself.

It happened for months until at one point I decided that I should figure out a way to overcome this problem. It's not healthy for me and it's affecting my relationship with other people too. Long story short, as time went by I was slowly getting myself back together. Well, I still got sudden breakdown moments at that time, but it has gotten so much better. That was when I realize that acceptance and gratitude are the two things that made me felt good and happy about myself. And that's why I decided to do more gratitude practice and try to keep a gratitude jar.

How to create a gratitude jar?

All you need is a jar and sticky notes. You can use any kind of jar, I even use a barbecue sauce jar lol - it still smells like barbecue every time I open it. At the end of every week, recall all the good times you had, be it little things or grand events, and write them on a note. Fold the note and put it inside the jar. Do it once a week for 52 weeks. At the end of the year you will have a jar filled with notes of happy moments that you had in that year. 

I've done one in 2019 and it was the greatest feeling ever when I finally read every single notes. My heart was full and I felt content, despite the bad times that I had in that year. Not only the result that sparks the joy in me, but also the whole process of doing this gratitude practice has greatly affected me. I become more positive and mindful of my surroundings, I don't take things for granted anymore, and I learn to appreciate everything in life, even the most mundane or smallest thing that didn't matter to me before.

To sum up, gratitude is something that you have to practice consistently to make it into a habit. It's not an overnight process, it took me months or even years to finally be in the state where I am now. Looking back to those days, I'm grateful that I went through all of it. Because, as cliche as it sounds, I wouldn't be who I am now if it weren't for those things.

I'm writing this to any of you who's currently having despair moment. I want you to know that you are not alone. Take as much time as you need to take in and process all of it. But also remind yourself that everything will pass and you will get through it in your own time. It's okay to have slow and steady growth, be gentle with yourself and know that you matter 💖 

I'm gonna end this with my favorite quote from Jay Shetty.

"Gratitude is like a seed. When you're grateful, you plant the seed in your life which is going to grow a beautiful tree and it helps you avoid weeds in our life. Sadness, disappointment, or anger are weeds in our life. So everyday try to plant seeds of gratitude."