Growing up, my mom tried every summer to get my sister and I to keep a journal. I think that she even set time aside most nights for us to write in them. Being the stubborn person that I am, though, this made me want to NOT do it! I don’t always love being told what to do. So I’d usually only last a few weeks before I gave up on it, much to my mom’s disappointment.
But recently, a few things have happened that have made me want to take up journaling again. One of my good friend’s colleague/mentor passed away from COVID-19 in New York, and his son wrote an incredibly touching tribute to him (you can read it here). He mentions that his dad kept a diary, to be read by his family after he passed away, and that detail just really struck me. I’ve also been thinking about how much I love writing here, and how much I get out of it, and that it might be nice to do that on my own, without having to worry about sharing too many personal details online.
So I’ve been writing in a journal for the last few weeks, but not putting any real pressure on myself in writing in it. I’m not forcing myself to do it every day, or on any set schedule – just whenever I feel the urge. For as much as I love all things tech, there’s still something so satisfying for me about putting pen to paper, and acknowledging thoughts that you might not be ready to say out loud. And I realize that because of my SMA, I might not be able to keep a handwritten journal forever (writing is much “harder” physically than typing, after a while), but I can right now, and I’m grateful for that. I do think it’ll be interesting, 5 or 10 years from now, to be able to look back and see what it was like during the pandemic.
Since we’re all spending more time than usual by ourselves right now, I think journaling is a great way to be introspective, and to work through the stress and anxiety and just questions about life right now! It can help work through things, and I think it helps us (or me, at least) to be fully honest with ourselves.
Of course, because I’m me, I needed a new journal to start writing in – I wanted it to feel like a fresh start, literally and metaphorically. I had pretty specific requirements – I needed it to be a spiral-bound one, because it’s too hard for me to write on ones that have to be held open flat – and found this perfect one (it’s even leopard print!!). If you don’t have strict requirements, though, and just want something cute to write in, I’m sharing some of my other favorites below.
