How I Began Journal Writing
Ever since I was a child, writing has fascinated me, whether I was telling the truth or making something up. I loved to write out words and phrases that made me think of fantastical lands and places far away. When I was angry I’d jot down all the nasty words I could think of. This made me feel better. It was only natural that at some point I wanted a special place where I could keep all my dreams and ramblings and that’s how I began journal writing.
“…journal writing became a way of keeping my sanity. It gave me the opportunity to escape…”As a teenager I was obsessed with my own life – boys, friends, squabbles with my mom and my sister. But I still wanted a nice place to keep all my thoughts. I quickly developed a preference for spiral bound notebooks. They were easy to pull out of a bag and jot down something in the middle of math class and could usually be hidden under my binder or textbook if the teacher came too close. As I grew older and my journal writing developed into story ideas and poetry, the spiral bound notebooks were great for curling up in a big comfy chair in the corner where I could write for hours if no one disturbed me.
Years later again, after I had children, journal writing became a way of keeping my sanity. It gave me the opportunity to escape from days of parent-teacher meetings, chasing toddlers, and picking up toys, into a place where I was still young with no responsibilities. During this time, I still had the spiral bound notebook, but I felt that it was important to invest in myself. I bought journals with pretty covers, fancy paper, and the all important fancy gel pen to go with it. Gel pens were my favorite type of pens for many years but everyone has a favorite pen that helps the ideas and the writing to flow faster.
Journal writing isn’t exciting for everyone, but for those of us who love it, it becomes sacred. Thus, the sacred activity must have sacred implements. There are many different types and formats of journals available online and it is definitely worth the time to browse through online stores. You can even keep a journal online if you want to share with friends or make new friends or you can keep it private. Whichever format you choose, the wide variety of journal templates makes journal writing fun and interesting.
Journal writing is an activity that many are growing to appreciate for its calming qualities. You can remove some of the stress in your life just by taking a few minutes to write in an online journal or by pulling out a beautiful notebook from your purse while you site in the coffee shop.
