My first journal was the diary my parents gave me for Christmas when I was leaving childhood and entering the world of adolescence. It had a leather cover with a little strap that locked it shut, perfect for a young teen girl growing up in a household with two annoying brothers.
My oldest diaries I came upon as I was doing a deep purge of things in preparation to move back to Ohio a couple of years ago date back to the late 70s. By then I’d left my twenties behind and busy keeping up with preschoolers.
Health Benefits of Journaling
Last Friday, I presented a workshop on the numerous health benefits of journaling at Lakeside, along Lake Erie between Cleveland and Toledo. A few of those benefits are:
* Helps manage anxiety
* Reduces stress
* Helps address depression challenges
◦Helps prioritize various aspects of daily life
* Tracks daily moods and that can reveal patterns
* Helps identify emotional triggers to avoid, if possible
* Tracks progress on achieving goals such as weight loss or reducing debt
Tips to Start
You really cannot do journaling wrong, but for people who need a little help getting started, here are a few different formats to explore.
*Stream of conscience. Pick up a pen and a notebook. Write down what you observe around you through your senses – sight, sound, touch, smell, taste.
* Take a journal T. R I. P. Record things for which you are thankful. List personal regrets or requests. Write intercessions for people and situations on your mind. Record what you plan to do over the next day, week, or month. Or write about longer-term goals.
* Data entry. Record where you went, what you did, and who you were with or spoke with since the last time you journaled.
Famous Journals
Much of what we know about the lives of our ancestors comes from the journals they left us. Perhaps one of the more famous journals was one written by William Bradford, long-term governor of Plimoth Plantation. In it he recorded the ups and downs of life in the fledgling English settlement from 1621 through 1647. It was first published in 1651 and has been reprinted in its original words and transcribed into more modern English countless times.
In his journal, he wrote: “Thus out of small beginnings greater things have been produced by His hand that made all things of nothing, and gives being to all things that are; and, as one small candle may light a thousand, so the light here kindled hath shone unto many.”
To occupy the long hours hidden away from the Nazi soldiers, young Anne Frank kept a diary. She hoped to one day write a book about her time confined to the Secret Annex. Though her life was cut short, her father, Otto, published the diary. It has since been translated into over 75 languages and is perhaps one of the most-read diaries in the world.
Family Diaries
Among the things that I’ve hauled back and forth across the country numerous times are the diaries of some of my family. I have my grandmother’s simple spiral bound notebook with her memories of life growing up on a farm in southeastern Ohio. I have my great-grandfather’s recollections of his time as a young soldier repeatedly conscripted to fight wars for the Fatherland before he brought his young family to North America to get away from war. Though not a diary per se, I have the collection of airmail letters my father sent home from Brazil, where his company sent him during WWII to help manufacture supplies for the war. He was there six months before my mother and older brother joined him. I also inherited numerous hand-written notes and letters my father’s sister sent to me, my father, and their mother. She tended to write a draft before she mailed the actual letter.
Finding Inspiration
As you can tell, I’m a strong advocate for journaling for our own benefit and as a way to document the era in which we are living. If you’re interested in giving it a try but still unsure how to start, perhaps some insights from Kathleen Norris will inspire you. She’s written a series of geographical spiritual essays. We tend to dismiss how much the geography around us impacts us until there’s a violent disruption in the form of a flood, tornado, fire, or earthquake. Then suddenly, we can’t focus on anything but news about what’s happening in the natural world.
In 40-Day Journey with Kathleen Norris, journal enthusiasts read an excerpt from one of her books, a corresponding bit of scripture, and journal reflection questions. For example: From Kathleen Norris in The Cloister Walk: Very small children are often conscious of God, for example, in ways that adults seldom are. They sing to God, they talk to God, they recognize the divine presence in the world around them: they can see the Virgin Mary dancing among the clouds, they know that God made a deep ravine by their house “because he was angry when people would not love him.” They believe than an overnight snowfall is “just like Jesus glowing on the mountaintop.”
The corresponding Biblical Wisdom is from Mark 10:13-16. People were brining little children to him in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them. But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, “let the children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them.
Journal Reflections:
* Spent time remembering your early childhood. What kind of spiritual experiences did you have?
* Write a blessing for a child in your life. If there are no childen in your life, write a blessing for the children in your community.
Talk Back
Has journaling been a part of your regular routine? If so, can you identify specific ways it’s helped you?
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Thank you for reading along. If you’ve enjoyed this araticle, you might also enjoy my posts on HowWiseThen.com.
I write about a variety of topics that comment on historical and current events.
Most of my books are available wherever you get your books, including libraries. I share a portion of profits with various non-profits.
Mary Brewster’s Love Life: Paperback, hardback and Ebook. Bookshop.org
Mayflower Chronicles: Paper, audio, Ebook. Bookshop.org
Asunder: Paper. HowWiseThen.com
A Ready Hope: Paper, Ebook. Rowman & Littlefield
40 Day Journey with Kathleen Norris: Paper. Augsburg Fortress
God in the Raging Waters. Paper. Amason.com
Married & Mobile. Paper. HowWiseThen.com
Love this, as journaling has been a great tool for healing in my own life. Still would like to attend one of your journaling workshops!
Journals make great companions.