A Box of Memories

I finally got around to painting my memory box this week, which gave me the chance to rifle through all of the things I've saved over the years. If I had it my way, I'd keep every card I was ever given, every train ticket I ever bought and every essay I ever wrote. However that would be insane and I'd probably end up on one of those shows about hoarders. Therefore my memory box is filled with an array of things that represent happy memories, or achievements... Unfortunately that means the card I received from that family friend that I've never met on my 14th birthday didn't quite make the cut.

Taking a trip down memory lane made me feel all warm and fuzzy and so I thought it would be nice to share a few of the less personal items from my box, in the hopes that it would encourage you all to dig up some of your own memorabilia... Or just leave you thinking that I'm a bit strange. You know, whatever. 

 I have kept all of my school planners as I rarely used them to record assignments, but instead to write notes to friends and of course to stick all my merits on! Naturally, it's also rather enlightening to look back on what I was thinking all those years ago; for example on the 8th of December 2009 it seems my biggest worry was my apparent dislike for Geography.

  When I left both primary and secondary school, I got my school shirt signed by everyone I knew. I'm guessing this is quite a universal thing; everyone turns up to school with a permanent marker and scrawls their name across all their friend's chests, perhaps with a poorly punctuated joke or a meaninglessly generic good luck message to accompany it. Looking back on them however, I spotted a few signatures that made me smile - "Cheer up smiley", from my maths teacher and "Kathryn, work on the laugh" from a friend. (My laugh was the source of a lot of mockery, with it often being compared to the noise a seal or a seagull makes, hence why I won the "Best Laugh" award at prom, which I have also kept.)

I also dug out my visitor pass from when I helped edit an edition of Banter Magazine, in association with The Evening Post. The main reason I kept this is because when I was chosen to take part in the Banter Magazine project, I discovered my love for writing about real things. Ok, I'm not saying that I like writing about politics, or world issues, or actual "real things", but I realised that creative writing wasn't the only type of writing. I got to write about fashion, films, and being a teenager; it was so exciting for me because I really fell in to my own. It was from then on that I vowed to write about what I know, and to stop trying and failing to write stories about American high schools.

I also came across my mini Glastonbury 2011 guide which I'm sure I will never throw away. Glastonbury was the first ever festival I attended, and the weekend ended with me and my best friend stood at the front of the Pyramid Stage, tired, sweaty and totally in awe of Beyonce. 

I have kept an array of birthday cards that pretty much speak for themselves. Well, the pugs speak for themselves at least.

These are some of the less embarrassing tickets that I have kept; The Nutcracker, a signed Marina and the Diamonds ticket, Glastonbury, Strictly Come Dancing Live, Thriller Live, James Morrison and various train tickets. I do also have cinema tickets and the ticket from my first ever McDonalds drive-thru, but I didn't want to seem too sad...

Various wristbands have also found their way in to the memory box, after being worn on my wrist (and in the shower) until they were in tatters! If I had things my way, I'd keep all wristbands on my wrists forever. Apparently that's not hygienic, though, so they all eventually get cut off and laid to rest.

 Finally, I have a lot of certificates as I like to look back on things I once achieved. I received a bronze certificate for the UK Intermediate Maths Challenge one year, which I was very proud of, not least because the year before I had scored a 0 for using pen instead of pencil. I also got given a certificate by my English teachers for being "The most likely to receive full marks despite only having read Harry Potter". What jokers. 

So, that's a few of my treasured memories - do any of you have memory boxes? If so, what sort of things do you keep in them?

KJ xo