for the waiting, when the answer is still on its way.
If something is weighing on you, put it into words and send it up. You are not solving it tonight. You are just setting it down for a while.
Words you want to come back to: a line that steadies you, something someone said, a reading or fortune you were given. Keep them here, and they'll drift back to you when you send up a light.
What arrived while you waited. When something good turns up, however small (a warm reply, a good coffee, a kindness), drop it in here. Whenever, or never. The jar keeps everything and asks nothing.
It can feel that way at 3am. It isn't true.
for the space between the question and the answer.
I built this for the waiting, and I meant it as a gift.
If it has been a light for you, you are welcome to pass a little warmth back, so the lanterns stay lit for whoever is waiting next.