Anyone who has ever asked me the cliche question "If your house was on fire and you could only save one thing on your way out, what would you take?" should know that, without any hesitation, I would save my journals. I have been fortunate enough to have at least one successful New Year's resolution which happened on January 1, 2003. I resolved to write every day in my journal, and although I occasionally have to catch up on a day or two, I've kept my goal.
For many years it remained a very basic day to day summary of what I did. In fact, it still feels like that occasionally, but that's part of being in the "Mormon Renaissance".
The one thing I am not afraid to do in my writing is scribble. One glance through the pages of my journals show "the thousand dying bodies of those false attempts, the skeletons of first or worst ideas".
President Spencer W. Kimball once said, "What could you do better for your children and your children's children than to record the story of your life, your triumphs over adversity, your recovery after a fall, your progress when all seemed black, your rejoicing when you had finally achieved?"
To sum up some of the benefits of writing in a journal, I will take from list in an article by Salli Hollenzer to which I can also attest to.
- Having a written family record of details that are a practical source of information.
- Having a clearer, richer memory of the past.
- Having a practical method of setting, tracking, and following through with goals.
- Having a therapeutic means to resolve emotional, social, and spiritual issues.
- Improving writing skills.
- Having a form of personal scripture.
I'm with you; if my house was on fire and I could only save one thing, I would definitely save my journals. I've been keeping a journal about as long as you have, and only good things have come from it--I am a HUGE advocate of journal writing. I skimmed Dr. Burton's excellent paper, and I believe, like you, that keeping a journal has allowed me a freedom of expression that I have sometimes been afraid to show otherwise. In my journal I don't have to worry about what other people will think or even really if I'm making sense or not. However, over the years I feel I have improved immeasurably in making my journal a richer, more valuable personal record.
ReplyDeleteOne of the greatest blessings i received on my mission was an appreciation for the importance of my journal. your post made me think of a mormon message by President Eyring. you have probably seen it but if not here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DF01BQAcj8E. enjoy.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with the both of you in that journals are extremely important. Not only do they tell our children about our personal lives but the open a window to how life is for us today. I also agree that blogging is becoming a popular substitute, but I was wondering about this in the context of today's discussion on forms of materials becoming obsolete, as in floppy disks, and increasingly CDs. Shouldn't we save the paper versions because everyone can always read them? (provided we don't all begin using Dutch in the next couple decades!)
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is a little risky to be relying completely on one source if you're doing it digitally since the popular format of storing things is constantly changing. I found this website called ldsjournal.com that's a completely free way to keep an online journal. Being an LDS program I have the feeling that it won't become obsolete at least anywhere in the near future.
ReplyDeleteI also started making a list of the pros and cons of keeping an online journal over a tangible one.
Pros: archiving, searching keywords, easier to access for people who spend a lot of time on the computer, attaching pictures (I think), spell check (could be viewed as a con), they won't be lost in a natural disaster.
Cons: you can tell a lot from a person's handwriting, you miss the struggle of scribbling out words or correcting mistakes, you can draw pictures and glue tickets or other items into it, intangible.
I'm sure both lists could keep going but mostly it's just up to personal preference.