Journaling is a thing these days, right! I mean everybody’s doing it. And everybody is saying we should do it. So for me, journaling became like this albatross….and if I started it, I felt like it became this horrible litany of all the things I did that day – and it was long and boring and meaningless or it was bitch session about how I had been wronged that day. I really didn’t find either of those very helpful!
However, following the loss my job where we were encouraged to work whichever 23 hours of the day we wanted, I found I had lots of time on my hands! In true Apryl fashion, I got my hands on some good “self-help” books and got to reading. Wouldn’t you know that the first two books I read had some focus on the importance of journaling. If there is one thing I am not – it is a quitter. So I thought I would try it again. But it really just felt so heavy when I thought about it and exhausting.
Now meditation is also something I am trying to incorporate into my daily routine. Like journaling, this is not easy for me. So I tried out guided meditation. So I decided maybe I needed some guidance for my journaling so I didn’t get caught up in the mundane details of my day or go down a rabbit hole that was not healthy.
I started reading a book by Hoda Kotb, I Really Needed This Today. This book has a daily quote and some note from Hoda as well. I realized that as I read these quotes each day, they inspired some thoughts about my life. It occurred to me that I could journal based on my inspiration from the daily quotes. And I LOVE IT!
I journal nearly every day now. Some entries are short and some are longer. I don’t hold myself to any rules! I just write what I feel!
Journaling allows us to quiet the mind and focus on a topic…we work things out….we have creative ideas. Journaling has been good for my soul.
This may or may not be a new idea for you, but if you struggle with journaling, I encourage you to try it out.
