Are you one of those people who takes tons of photos, and then promptly forgets about them? I mean, the idea of photographs is to have a reminder of something, a memory frozen in time that you can take out and relive. But so often I collect photos, organize them (because I love organization), and then never look at them again. What’s the point of the photos? It’s crazy that we take so many pictures as a society (mostly of ourselves now, it seems), and we’re so unhappy because we’re not taking that good memory out of its box and remembering what we found worth photographing in the first place.

Take some time to remember your memories. Brush off the dust (proverbial or otherwise) from that box of photographs and go through them. Look at your picture albums. Scroll through your digital journal. You’ll be struck by all the happy memories. And happiness for some of us can be an elusive presence. When you’re depressed or anxious, a look into your happy memories can give you that boost you need. Because you were happy one, and you’ll be happy again. This too—whatever you are going through—shall pass.

The Huffington Post posted a good article about Why We Take Pictures:

• For the memories
• For the story
• In order to learn
• In order to feel

All are good reasons, all can help us be a little bit happier. Photographs matter; they move us, they inspire us, they uplift us. They hearken back to feelings of joy and happiness, nostalgia and yearning. They write the story of our lives; they create a legacy for those who are to come. So when you’re having a Dark Day, look to your previous self to lift you higher, to give you the boost, to remind you that you do matter.

Choose Joy.

—A