Today
let’s chat about journaling. Most people probably got their first experience
with journaling as a third grade assignment. When I was in the third grade
(with Mrs. Kolstad’s class at Deephaven Elementary) we started class every day
with 15-20 minutes of writing in those Harriet the Spy type of notebooks. Of
course, I don’t remember what I wrote about but I know that I gained a lot of
interest in writing through those assignments. Allowing children to free-write
is a great idea, it’s an entirely different form of writing than academic
writing because it enables children to write at their own pace and about their
own interests. I’m a firm believe that you can never write enough!
However,
I definitely fell off the journaling wagon in middle and high school. There
were many times that I would begin writing in a journal, with the full
intention of making a habit out of it, only to let it be forgotten. I’m not
sure why I was not able to keep it up; I always loved writing creatively but
for some reason I was not reliable when it came to keeping a journal.
That
changed the summer after my freshman year of college, probably due to the fact
that I bought a very pretty, floral designed journal by Vera Bradley (she
discontinued them!) at my school’s bookstore. Since then, I’ve gone through 8
journals and I started my 9th after this past Christmas. I don’t
always write every day, and on occasion I let a week go by without writing.
I’ve
found that journaling is really therapeutic and cathartic. I typically don’t like
to write about negative or upsetting things—because I don’t necessarily want to
remember them. But if I’m upset or worried about something, writing about can
clear up my thoughts or help me to understand why something is bothering me.
It’s rare that I don’t feel better and more relaxed after writing down my
thoughts and worries.
I also
like the idea of preserving memories. Maybe one day, when I have children, they
will read my journals to learn more about me. I can also relive important and
wonderful moments by reading what about what I was feeling and thinking.
So what
about you? Do you journal? Or have you tried in the past but it just hasn’t
stuck? Next week, I’ll post a journal prompt that could work as a jumping off
point to journaling. Happy writing!
