The Lights Go On Every Once and a While

It's a fresh new year and during these kinds of times I'm prone to think about the past. I guess I'm a little late, most people get their fix of nostalgia on New Year's Eve as they ring in the New Year. I'm a nostalgia addict. I love thinking about the past as much as I can- anything to surface those hidden, forgotten memories that make life just a little more funny. One thing I think is a great way to do this- to capture some seemingly mundane moments and turn them into memories is to keep a book with you at all times, and write in it whenever a light goes on. I have a little black moleskine notebook (what it says on the cover makes it nearly impossible not to want. It says, "The Legendary Notebook of Van Gogh Matisse, Hemingway and Chatwin. It's history lies in its inside pocket." That, for me, said YOU NEED ONE. (I must admit, it also makes me feel more intelligent for some reason.)

Over 2008 I didn't use my moleskine as much as a would have liked. I wrote poems in it, one-liners that randomly entered my head, book lists, book ideas, quotes from books and people, and notes from sermons. This year I am going to make a concerted effort to have it with me at all times. And whenever the lights go on, I'm going to try and trap them inside my moleskine. The best part of these things is the looking back on it after its long been full. Pure nostalgia.

So now my prescription is a moleskine and a pencil on me at all times. Poised and ready to capture, because, believe it or not, the lights go on every once and a while.