A year and a half ago, I was sitting at my friend Kellyn’s kitchen table, drinking tea (as we often do) and talking with her about what a rollercoaster our freshman year of college was. Six months prior, in January of 2016, one of our closest friends died unexpectedly, and the trajectory of our lives was thrown off course. My group of six best friends became five. It was, without a doubt, the worst thing that had happened to any of us.
As we sat there talking about all of this, I consciously decided that I didn’t want to continue in the rut I was in, one of feeling helpless and small and, most importantly, unhappy. I googled “how to be happier,” which sounds vague and cliché, but apparently it worked. I came across a project called 100 Happy Days, in which you document, via Facebook or Instagram or however you want, something every single day that makes you happy. I loved this idea, and so did Kellyn, so we started the project together that night.
This morning I was lucky enough to grab breakfast with three of the most beautiful ladies I know? #100happydays #day86
100 days flew by and felt far too short, ending just a few days before the start of our sophomore year. After some debate, we both decided to make 100 days into 365 – to continue the challenge and see if we could focus on happiness for 365 consecutive days. Now we both have our sophomore year documented, in both pictures and descriptions, and I can honestly say it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
Love accurately describes this photo❤️ in my book of perfect days, this one was high up there #365happydays #day169
The pictures I took in this past year help me remember the big things more clearly: mini-vacations with my friends, events with my Fraternity, my sister’s college graduation day. But happiness doesn’t always have to be huge: sometimes my happiness was drinking tea, or getting postcards from a high school friend, or my weekly pizza nights with my Big. I saved the important parts of the day in descriptions, where I summarized both the good and bad (I put shortened captions here, but usually my captions were pretty long). Not every day was happy, but that’s the point: no day is going to be 100% perfect, but it was about finding the best parts of the day and focusing on that.
Today was a mostly normal day that consisted of a copious amount of tea, soup, and DayQuil (thanks Mel!) #365happydays #day320
Overall, this is a challenge I would recommend to anyone, even for someone not necessarily looking to become happier. It’s a nice way to document your days, take more pictures, and spend more time appreciating the little things in life. It gives you something happy to look back on.
Congrats, grad, I love you?? #365happydays #day352
I meant to write this article a lot sooner, but life got in the way (as life does). My 365 days ended in early May, but I still find myself taking more pictures, and I may or may not have a private Instagram account, just for myself, to document my junior year. You don’t have to share your challenge with the world: you can create a note on your phone where you keep track of your days, or make a private Instagram account for yourself. The point is not about showing off – the point is to think more about what makes you happy. The point is to look for the silver linings, even on the grayest of days.
If you’re interested in the 100 Happy Days Challenge, you can find more information online, and for Kellyn’s perspective, you can check an article she wrote about our first 100 days.
All photos are author’s own.