*Chosen to be exhibited at The Learning Design Conference Asia

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Do you know the saying, "Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get"? Well, for me, chocolates was definitely not it. Life is more like a box of all the little things - love letters, memories, movie tickets, first love, first job.

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For a school project, I created a visual representation of myself that could fit in a box, filled with mementos I couldn't bear to throw away. I chose to let the smallest things define me, rather than the most significant or my favourite things. I categorised them into pictures, letters, and collectible items, each confined to their own places - letters in a letter holder, collectibles in an ancient jewelry box, and pictures in an old Kodak paper bag.

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Each item was wrapped with a string and a key, adding a sense of excitement in the unveiling of my memories, secrets, and experiences. It can be scary to show the world the tiny things that matter most, like a peacock feather passed down from a late grandmother I miss so dearly, or a love letter that never got sent out. When you let people in, you open yourself up to judgment, not just based on the pretty things you choose to show them, but on the memories, setbacks, all the times you held yourself back or said too much, and events that make up your entire lifetime. But sometimes it's alright to let the world know where you came from and where you're going.

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Looking back at these mementos, I discover new things about myself each time. Nostalgia is going back to a time or place in life and reliving those moments - feeling the way I did, smelling what was around me, hearing the person's voice. But every time I look back, I gain new knowledge about myself only to see it in a different light and realise it was always much more than what I remember it to be. I believe nostalgia truly is a journey of self-discovery and self-recovery.