On Journaling
I don’t take drastic changes when a new year begins. I ease into the year slowly. I’m a detail-oriented person by nature. I don’t tend to think “big picture.” That’s one of the billion reasons I love my husband so much. He likes to dream big and opens my eyes to seeing life on a larger scale.
As the new year started, I decided to take Kelly Dahl’s e-course called FulFILL Your Year. In it we are encouraged to journal and work through prompts. As soon as I read that – I realized that I hadn’t journaled since before I was married. I used to spill all my thoughts onto paper and now I most likely do the same thing (verbally) to Adam now.
If I believe in balance as much as I say that I do – then I know that it’s not really healthy for Adam to act as my stand-in journal. Sure, I will always tell him everything and share my heart…but there must be balance.
So I went to Barnes and Noble and picked up a bright red Moleskine. After only journaling for about a week, I’ve realized a few things.
- I have a better idea of what 2012 was like.
- I have a better idea of what I want 2013 to look like.
- I have a hard time being myself around people who think I’m someone that I’m not.
- I am very, very blessed.
Do you journal? Do you just spill your thoughts? Share your fears? Recap your day?
A Consideration
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Comments (12)
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I love that Brook! I used to journal my prayers too. It’s a wonderful way to look back and see how good God is :)
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Allie, I love this post. I journal every single day to reflect on my decisions, opinions and ideas for the future. I agree that I can tell I’m not writing enough when I realize I just use John as a sounding board, and that’s not really fair for him to hear all of my inner most thoughts. I feel like journaling gives me a sense of balance and appreciation for things that I may not have noticed before. Thanks for sharing.
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I love that you journal, Janine! I’m glad to know you can relate re: spilling it all to our guys haha.
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I love journaling, but don’t do it everyday. I always keep a Moleskin around for random thoughts, ideas, or sketching. Just a place to keep my brain basically.
I also do this exercise that I really enjoy. At the end of the day I write the opposite of a to-do list and instead write a have-done list. Listing all the small and big things I did that day from getting my favorite coffee to finishing a big project. It helps me feel very accomplished and happy about each day.
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I love that idea, Brianna! What an encouraging thing to do before or after I make my to-do list for the next day!
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I use to journal a ton, once I went to college I got out of the habit. Partially because I had a fear of people finding it. I missed it a lot though so after a few years of keeping a sketch journal I’m going to go back to writing a little bit more and journaling things I’m thankful for.
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That’s awesome! I’m excited to be able to look back on my thoughts when I’m older. I feel like I missed out on that reflection over the past few years.
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When I look back through my journals and diaries from the past few years, I’ve noticed that I tend to write less about the actual events that happened. I’m vague about names and details of the day, but I focus instead on the emotions that I feel and the worries of my day. I always wanted to get into documenting what each day entailed, but I get too bored haha. Great post!
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That’s awesome! I think documenting TOO many details starts to feel a bit boring too. Plus, it feels repetitive since you just experienced it!
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This ecourse looks pretty awesome indeed! In fact, I cant live without journaling! I love making it beautiful with drawings, collage and pictures, so I feel like writing everything in it. I put professional ideas next to creative text next to spontenious ideas and I love that mix!
Oh, and Moleskine are the best!
Olive xox -
Brook
I love to write anything, but I really specifically love to journal prayers. It makes my prayers more tangible offerings, and I can remember a lot about my life in that moment. Now that I’m travelling, I’m writing a lot more day-by-day recaps. I bet the prompts get a lot of deep-thinking juices flowing.