What Words Can Do

I have kept a journal since the age of twelve when I was gifted with a small pink diary.  The book I'm shopping around is based upon confessional entries I wrote during 1964 and 2004.  Needless to say Volume I covers a lot of ground, and I'm now editing Volume II.  But I'm not here to promote my manuscript - I wanted to tell my readers why I like to journal on a regular basis.

When my words hit the paper it’s like I’m sitting in a comfortable chair while speaking to a mental health specialist.  I write down my thoughts, twists and turns, highs and lows.  I put pen to paper and list my fears, goals, recent disappointments, and the highlight of my week.  A paragraph may describe my frustration at not being able to tell a person I’m feeling neglected, or I could jot down what I saw in my meditation garden that morning as I said a quick prayer up to the high heavens.  I’ll also place quotes, cartoons, pictures, titles of memoirs I hope to purchase within the pages of my journal, then take colored markers and draw little flowers or happy faces.  It’s a joy – it’s a jaunt down memory lane – although not always jovial. 

In my opinion, there are six good reasons to maintain a journal.

 

1)      It’s cheap therapy

2)      It offers you a point of reference

3)      You can do it anywhere, at any time

4)      It’s  a monument of sorts for your family

5)      You can use excerpts for magazine articles or contest entries

6)      You can pull it all together and pursue publication (that would be me)

 

To begin you will need to select a blank diary, yellow legal tablet, ornate journal, etc.  Something that reflects your “today” personality.  If you’re angry choose a red tablet; if you’re trying to live green, select the one shade that honors your commitment to the environment.  If you’re blue on that particular day, blue is the color you reach for, or if you’re in the pink – well, you get the picture.  You can purchase an inexpensive journal at any department store.

 

What’s important now is to find a place that is comfortable and quiet to begin your writing.  I frequently sit at my dining room table with the blinds open, so I can occasionally look up and watch the robins dart around the yard.  Sometimes I’ll sit on the back deck and write a few thoughts while listening to our many wind chimes. If I’m uptight and want to be away from the pets or the spouse, I’ll close myself off in the bedroom for an hour with a candle burning and music turned down low.  It’s important that the phone is off and you have no obligations or household tasks at the moment.

 

I usually post the date, time, weather and my current weight at the top of the page.  Yes, I realize I’m anal and suffer from OCD and have actually written about the experience.  You can simply write the date and begin with one sentence, one thought, one concern, one hurt, one dream, or one goal.  Write a paragraph to your husband or lost friend.  Write a letter to your deceased grandparent or the new baby that’s due to make their appearance next month. You can divide the page in two and list positives on one side and negative thoughts on the other (i.e. glass ½ full, glass ½ empty).

Start a paragraph with a memory of a happy day, or write a few lines about an incident that incensed you.  Choose a sentence from an advertisement or a title of a book that caught you by surprise.  Two favorites of mine are “I Love You, I Hate You, I’m Hungry” which is a collection of single-panel cartoons by Bruce Eric Kaplan.  I’m also fond of a former Jeep campaign that reads, “I Live. I Ride. I Am.”  Other successful jump starts:

 

Write to the child you once were; write about an unwelcome surprise.  Write about something you did wrong that you do not regret; write an apology to a parent.  Write about scolding a child; write about a situation that took place in the woods. Write about a favorite fragrance and the memories it brings. Write about your Mom’s holiday cooking; your first bad hair cut. 

Don’t be concerned about punctuation or penmanship!  This is for your eyes only, unless you decide to submit to a magazine or send as a contest entry.  Insert quips, quotes, recent photographs, excerpts from job reviews, favorite movie reviews, etc.   Do a self-portrait even if it’s a stick woman with balloon breasts.  Remember you can be irritable, loving, sarcastic, gloomy, high on life – whatever your mood is on that particular day. Write what comes to mind and remember the end will make itself known. 

A wonderful resource is Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott and then try to get your hands on as many back issues of Writer’s Digest Magazines that you can. I’ve had the pleasure of teaching the art of diary keeping to colleagues, friends, neighbors and family.  Please don't hestiate to contact me at bellissimomont@centurytel.net and place WHY JOURNAL? in the subject line.   I’m happy to be of assistance...at no cost.  Keeping a journal is a way to figure out who you used to be and how you got to be who you are.

So, what are you waiting for?