Why I Started An Online Gratitude Journal

It’s officially been one month of quarantine.

With COVID-19 shutting down schools all around the world, I packed up everything I knew in my tiny little dorm room to move back to Singapore. The quick move was a culture shock, and I wasn’t expecting it to be so hard to adjust back to “normal life” back at home (even though there was nothing normal about the situation all of us were in).

The first two weeks were the hardest because I had to self-quarantine in isolation. Although I was lucky to have my phone & my computer to call people, it never felt the same as being physically in the room holding a conversation with someone else. I was restless, and I wanted to leave the room. Above all, I missed my daily routine. Mentally, I knew I wasn’t holding up as well as I had hoped, so I began an online gratitude journal in hopes of staying afloat & spreading positivity. It was by far the best decision I made.

Inspired by two of my friends, I used Instagram’s “Close Friends Story” as my platform. Everyday, I would take a photo of something that highlighted my day, and I would use text filters to create an aesthetically pleasing post. I would write down “3 Things That I’m Grateful For” each day (sometimes more!), and I would post it every night. My main priority when I started it was to find the good in each day. Although it’s hard to do sometimes, I still believe that everyone can name at least three things that went well for them each day. These three things don’t have to be drastic, incredible or amazing. They can be as simple as you would like them to be. Maybe you saw a meme that made you laugh or maybe your parents surprised you with something small. There is always something good if you keep your eyes open to it & interpret it in the right way.

The more I posted, the happier I felt, and my mental health slowly started to get back on track. It made me happy to reflect on my days, and it also made me happy when people would swipe up & leave a comment, relating to something that happened to me! The best feeling was always at the end of the month when I could look back at every highlight that I recorded. In many ways, it felt like I was capturing the entire day with one photo, and it was nice because I could “relive” that day through that photo weeks later if I wanted to.

Above all, with everything going on in the world right now, spreading positivity & manifesting my beliefs have been two factors that have been getting me out of bed every morning. While every day seems to mash up with every other day in lockdown, it’s nice to have a bit of “proof” to see what has happened in my life. And as corny & cheesy as it sounds, “Every day may not be good, but there is something good in every day.”