On Journaling

My writing journey began nearly twenty years ago when I began keeping a diary. The diary was a gift from family friends. It was white, small, hardback, with a tiny gold lock & key. I especially adored that feature as I had three siblings. I began to write in it, and eventually I filled its little pages, and got a new diary, also small with a lock & key. Fast forward through the years, and many preferences of journal size & style, and I now have boxes of filled journals. At some point in this journey, I began to add things in, other than just writing. If I flip back through my volumes, I find all sorts of things attached to the pages -- receipts, photos, stickers, brochures, ticket stubs, ballet & theatre programs, greeting cards, candy wrappers, florist cards, you name it, it's probably in there somewhere. I have used many methods for affixing said objects -- staples, Scotch tape, doublestick tape, clear packing tape, and gluestick.

Essentially my journals have become what I jokingly call "scrapnals" -- a mix of scrapbooking & journaling. They are journal books, filled with lots of writing, but with a fair amount of proof & illustration.

I journal about everything. Daily events, things my daughters say, celebrations, tough times, food, weather, outings & events, things rattling around in my head and heart that have no audience.

Journaling is therapeutic. But that's not nearly all it is to me. Between the covers of my journal I record life. I creatively illustrate my pages using stickers, brads, marker, colored pencil, rubber stamps, photos, drawings, etc...

It is art. It is creativity. It is authenticity. It is history. It is reflection & recollection & restoration.

"Creative journaling", for lack of a better term, is a gift. Watch for future blogs on journaling.