Inbox for the Future

I like to use technology to reduce guilt, and one of the things I used to feel bad about was about the (lack) of baby books for my kids.

Enter: Gmail.

A few years ago, I set up a Gmail address for each of my kids. Now, whenever inspiration strikes, I send their address a quick email - about something funny they said, a milestone they hit, or special thoughts from me to them I want them to have when they're older. Sometimes, if it's a cute interaction between siblings, I email all of them at once to batch the memory documentation.

Their own personal Gmail inbox then becomes a hybrid baby book, memory capture, and special letters for the future, all at once. And once a year around their birthdays, I share the email address and encourage grandparents and aunts/uncles to write them notes for them to read when they are older.

My plan is when they graduate high school, I'll hand over the inbox and password.

Hacking a Gmail into a way to capture personalized moments and write letters for someone special to read later is easy, free, and you could set up an inbox for anyone: your current/future kids, your current/future partner, even yourself and not let you open it until X years from now.

-Molly Beck