The stuff I've collected over the years in my little box/bureau drawer/keepsake chest marks every step of my way

My dark, velvet lined abyss of a jewelry box is a collection of accessories that I have had throughout various times of my life. When I adoren myself with one of these archives, its like an instant walk back in time. 

I have little colorful plastic barrettes in the shapes of flowers and butterflies, which I worn in high school. You normally see them worn on babies, but I frequently used them to zest up an outfit. They were funky and completely out of fashion at the time, so I thought they were the greatest. 

I have a diamond tennis bracelet, that my grandfather gave me for my 18th birthday. My mom threw together a surprise birthday party for me that year, the only one I've ever had. I thought my mom and I were going out for a quiet dinner, but when I turned the corner and saw all my friends and family, I knew I had been duped. My grandfather gave me this bracelet, at my party and he told me that he was proud of me. 

I also have a shell necklace, in this sea of jewelry, that I got while I was in Mexico. My family and I traveled down south, right after I graduated high school. We went to a safe tourist town but anytime we left our hotel to adventure, it was a little dicey. I got that necklace from a market in a neighboring town and like to think of it as a symbol of victory, for getting out of there in one piece.

I also have a bracelet I got while in the Virgin Islands, on St. Croix. Its a silver, small bracelet that clasps in the front, like a hook. This is a signature Crucian hook bracelet, said to give you love and luck. You wear it a certain way if you are single and another if you are taken. This is my favorite piece of jewelry, not just because of the way it looks but because when I wear it I think back to this tropical paradise.