We have Instagram, Twitter, Facebook. What more do we need to keep track of our daily lives? The answer is probably not a lot. We constantly come into contact with people’s personal lives on a daily basis through means of photos and comments. Those few little things can tell a lot about what was going on in that point of your life.
What about those more personal thoughts and feelings? While some people may post those without a second thought, not many of us do. What is the one thing that doesn’t get to showcase your life highlights? Our whole lives aren’t as picture perfect as we pretend they are. This thought is saddening and true. What is some way that we can share our frustrations, goals, and heartbreaks?
Journaling. Let me take you back to the middle school days where you would go home a furiously scribble angry words that were directed at you parents or friends who just didn’t understand you. Didn’t writing out your thoughts make you feel so much better? What is even better is that now we have the opportunity to look back on the journals. How naïve we all were in wanting to grow up and how we dealt with situations. Those journal entries never fail to make me smile on the things that I thought were so important.
College is a time where we are all experiencing things. We are all learning what it means to be an adult. What it is like to fall in love with a person, place, or subject. Journaling allows a small book to be there with us through it all.
I know, it sounds easier than done. Taking the time to write our thoughts for the day in a book, when we would much rather be watching Netflix? It’s a tough thing. Journaling allows us to have a chance to reflect on where we are in our lives. Almost like giving us a reality check, when sometimes we desperately need one. It gives us a different perspective, perhaps really showing us how we feel about a situation. That notebook we write everything in shares all the life experiences that we are dealing with daily. It accepts our life triumphs and defeats. It accepts secrets about ourselves that others may not accept.
When the world is chaotic, the paper and pen are not. They are not there to judge us or be mad at us for situations we may have found ourselves in. They are there to guide us and help us feel better. Journaling gives you a sense of relief when you put it all on paper. It feels as if you almost told someone and now they will keep that secret for you for all of eternity.
Try it, for a least a week. Give yourself ten minutes before bed and empty out all the thoughts, good or bad for the day. You don’t need to check all of social media. I promise what you would see before bed will be there in the morning. Doing this one action may cause a series of reactions. You may find that you are sleeping better. You may find that you walk with a happier perspective on life. Maybe even in a couple years you’ll find the little book in a big box to help you relive some of the greatest days of your life.