A Personal Plea to Keep a Journal

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My mom was an avid journal keeper. I remember one evening about a year ago, we discovered her journals and as a family began reading through one she’d kept throughout her teen years. One particular entry gave us insight into the boy-crazy world she lived. I watched her that evening, as a grown-up, giggle and relive the moments she wrote about.

Journal

My mom died about a month ago, and I have returned to these journals on several occasions, trying to hear her voice as she wrote them and gleaning life lessons I can take with me. She wrote about life as a new mom trying to struggle through the chaos of her first child. She wrote about the frustrations of feeling overworked and under-appreciated. She wrote prayers, songs, and short stories. The lesson I’ve learned is that journals are invaluable, not just to know the life she lived, but to feel my mom’s influence in my day-to-day life. She may not have intended it, but her journals are one of the best gifts she gave me.

Journaling has huge benefits, from decreasing anxiety and stress to boosting memory and comprehension. If you want to read more about the benefits, here’s a good article.

Unlike my mom, I’ve never been good at keeping journals. In fact, I have one journal I’ve tried to keep for the past decade. It’s about seven pages long, and each entry begins with “I know I haven’t written in a couple years, but I swear I’m going to do better.” Then, two years later my next entry starts with a similar sentence. Clearly, keeping journals have never been my thing.

If it’s not your thing either, here are some ideas on how you can capture your thoughts and memories.

  • Use a real journal, blank pages and all. I know I just said journaling wasn’t my thing, but I love seeing my mom’s handwriting and the free form of her words, so this goes to the top of the list. If you opt to use a real journal, find a regular time to actually write. For me, I’ve been doing this each Sunday. Actually, if I’m keeping it real, I’ve been doing it in Sunday School each Sunday  This is the only time I KNOW I’ll do it, and for me, that’s valuable.
  • Use social media. If you’re a big status updater, you can use social media like Facebook and then order yearly copies of something like My Social Book. The downside is that it’s hard to put your personal thoughts and feelings out there (of course, you could use privacy settings), but if this is the only way you’re going to record what you’re doing, then use it.
  • Use an online journal like jrnl.com. Sometimes it’s hard to hand-write a long story, perhaps you want to easily include pictures, or maybe you need something you can do on the fly using your phone. Online journals often have the option to include pictures with the benefit of being able to quickly type out your entries.
  • Use a daily calendar. If you use a planner for your day-to-day activities, just take a few moments each day to end with some thoughts and feelings. Then you have the agenda and activities of the day alongside how you felt. 
  • Use an app, like Five Minute Journal. There are journal apps, and then there are apps that prompt you with daily questions. This is a quick way to jot thoughts down, especially for the days when you’re really not sure what to write.

Honestly, it doesn’t matter how you journal — but as a daughter who very much appreciates the journals her mom kept, I encourage you to keep a record of your life somehow. I’ve been amazed at some of the things I’ve learned about my mom and the influence she had in how I parent my kiddos everyday. Journaling brings us closer to those who will come after us and enables our legacy to be carried on.

4 COMMENTS

  1. I love this Heidi! As a journaled I have definitely thought of my journals as important heirlooms to leave behind. Good post!

  2. Yes to all this, my mom died three years ago and I’ve held onto her words so closely and cling to them when I miss her. I just had my first child and I am trying so hard to journal. What a beautiful and lucky thing we gscd from our moms. Love to you.

    • I’m so glad you have her journals. I hope to read my mom’s to my kids as they grow older. I’m sure your kiddo will appreciate the value as they grow.

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