Journaling, is it for you?

Many of my postings will be taken from my journals, usually with some editing and revising. I began writing in a journal in the mid to late 1970’s when I discovered it to be a useful tool in helping me get through n very tumultuous time in my life. What was initially a haphazard exercise initiated by emotional turmoil and confusion soon became a daily routine. For the past 30 years I have started t every day with 15 to 30 minutes spent in my journal. It helps in so many ways: to clarify my thoughts, to understand my feelings and my behavior, and to see solutions to what I thought were hopeless problems, to name just a few. The entries may be mundane and diary-like, deep and soul searching, or simple silent cries for help, depending on what my needs may be.

From the beginning I have written on paper kept in a 3 ring binder using only a fountain pen. On rare occasions I had to resort to ballpoint or felt tip pens and hated them. During the winter of 2002-2003 I developed rather severe arthritis in my hands that was severe enough to make writing impossible, and I turned to the computer. Fortunately the arthritis resolved completely in several months and I could return to my fountain pen. What I find interesting is that while the computer is my preferred means of all of my other writing, it simply doesn’t work for the journal. For some reason I need the feel and the intimacy of pen and paper and the freedom from format and grammar that the primitive instrument provides. I get pleasure out of the feel and the sound of the pen moving across the paper. There is a more direct connection between my emotions and the words as they escape from the pen than there is with the computer. In addition I can place words and lines wherever I want them, using the spacing and placement of text to emphasis my thoughts or ideas, something I can’t do with the computer. Of course whether or not anyone can read my writing remains to be seen. Perhaps that is another advantage of the pen and paper.