It’s all in the writing!

I’ve been thinking about what topic I wanted to write about and have had a few ideas and started to work on a piece over the past couple of months. But throughout writing that piece, I kept getting the feeling that I should focus my next blog on the the joys of writing a journal. Then the other morning as I was going through my emails, I got a newsletter with the heading ‘the importance of journaling’ and reading that newsletter highlighted to me how much I enjoy writing in my journal and the benefits it has brought me. Hence the focus of this blog is all about journaling.

I have been writing journals since my teens and have always found it a great way to relax and off-load any issues that were on my mind. And over time when I’ve looked back at what I have  previously written, I can see the growth I have made in my own life. Growth from the perspective of how I have moved from ‘drama’ to ‘acceptance’ of where life has taken me (or you could say where I have ended up!). That’s what life will do to you. It will take you through events and experiences which will ultimately grow your soul.

Therefore if you start to write a journal it will help you to see over time how much in control you actually are to the events in your life. I personally can see where I have at times over-reacted to certain events and at a later date realised that I had nothing to worry about! But life will throw these types of events our way, the challenge is not to get drawn into the drama it can often create.

Also by re-reading your own journals at a later date, you will be able to see the ‘drama’ periods in your life from a different perspective and possibly even laugh back at those events. This is because you will suddenly become the observer to what you had previously written. The saying that the act of observation changes that which is being observed is very true! By re-reading those past entries you will notice the times you were complaining or moaning about a person or situation and then in hindsight look back and see how everything at that time was exactly how it was meant to be.

For those of you who haven’t written a journal before I really do suggest you give it a try. You don’t even need to sit down and write into a book, you can type onto a memo tab on your mobile phones! My Blackberry is full of notes I have written on the go. A personal favourite of mine is when I wrote a note back in 2010 when I was visiting Oslo. It was such a beautiful day that I had the urge to write what I was experiencing. And today by re-reading that particular entry I can go back in time and re-experience that day. It’s a lovely feeling. Your journal will have both highlights and low-points of your life, but this is what will show you how far you have come.

Journaling is also a great way to meditate. If you’re someone who can’t keep their mind still whilst being in a quiet space, then try writing your thoughts down instead. By creating a clear space to sit and write it will help you to quieten your mind and seek inner guidance which can be invaluable. Remember the journey of life is about growth and what better way to keep a track of your own growth than through your own personal journals.

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