The week has passed on again and here we are, late on Sunday evening trying to communicate with you all again. Sometimes, it is tough considering what to write about. I have been doing this blog now since 2011 and each time I sit down to write, I want to share something unique and new with you. Now, I am a journal keeper so sometimes, it is easy to come up with something to talk about; Other times, the stuff in my journal is just too unfinished and private to share with the world yet.
Do you keep a journal?
I always love to encourage people to keep one and write in it regularly. And most people choose not to, for reasons of their own. I think it is a great pity. Think back to yesterday, how much of it do you still remember? Think back to this time last year, do you remember what you were doing around this time of the year? Do you remember the challenges you were facing? Do you remember the great times?
I know I cannot. I have a vague idea of things but to vividly remember anything I would have to refer to one of my many journals. I love that I can do that. I have journals dating back to when I was 15 or 16 when I discovered the joys of writing and found places to hide things so my parents did not read them. Unfortunately, privacy was a very hard-won commodity in my house. That was not great 🙁 .
Anyway, tonight I wanted to list a few of the reasons I journal and why I feel you would benefit from the activity yourself. So here goes…
- As I have already mentioned, a journal enables you to keep accurate records of the passing of life. This can be a photo journal about your children – keep a written record as well as photographs detailing the happenings of your little ones. I have not been the best at this but I am certainly working on it. I do however try to keep a running commentary of my life, so I can usually look back through my journals to a particular event.
- My next reason to journal would be to vent – There are times when you need to get all the angst, annoyance, frustration, excitement, happiness out. My journal is excellent for that. I can write exactly how I feel without editing. When no one else wants to listen or maybe you do not have the words to say, you can write in your trusty journal and work out all the nonsense.
- Write down your goals – An obvious use for it. You can write where you hope to get to and go over and over and over it. You can visualise all you have written over and over and begin to see it happen.
- Be Grateful – You can just have a gratitude journal. Do you find yourself an easy target for depression or sadness? Take a few minutes (5 at the most) each day to write quickly all the things you are grateful for. Do it and see how quickly you begin to feel a bit better.
- Watch for growth – Or conversely lack of growth. Can you see the changes you have made in your life. Are you far from where you were the last time you faced this issue? Be thankful for the growth you see. If you unfortunately feel like you have fallen backwards, note when the changes started so that you can backtrack and not make the same mistakes again.
- Leave a legacy – One of my main reasons for keeping journals is to leave something of myself behind for my daughters as they get older. I want them to know the weird things that went on in my mind, I want them to understand better any misunderstandings we may have from my side. I want them to know how much I love them. I also want to remember what I felt like when I was younger so that I am not too harsh with them.
- Write prayers down – Another use I find for my journals is to write my prayers.
- Multi million Dollar Ideas – Do you ever have a great idea and then forget about it? Well, if you carried a small journal with you, you could record it immediately. You never know when a great idea will come in handy. Record them as soon as they pop into your head.
Anyway, that is enough for now. I did write something about my writing a little while ago.
