Entry, 9/20/95
" Well, my period is late---so, I went to the store to buy a pregnancy home test kit.
?!@><?)&% It came out positive! Then, of course, thinking I had double vision, or some other visual impairment, I called Mike and asked him for some extra money so I could go buy another pregnancy home test kit---and THAT was positive too! I can't believe it, to actually be pregnant, another life inside me. I don't know if I should laugh or cry. I'm going to have a baby, a child to love, to give it all that I didn't get as a kid, mostly a secure family................God bless you baby. "
I have kept an ongoing Journal since 1972. I have lived my life, and relived my life through the words written on those pages. I have unloaded sad moments, insecurities, expressed the joys of my marriage, the birth of my own child, and his life as well. I have seen how my style in handwriting has changed! From being very loopy and slanted to upright and distinct. My handwriting matured as I did (if you know anything about handwriting analysis, you will appreciate this). I have recorded historical moments in time as they affected me. I have 15 volumes of treasured memories. My Journal is my sanctuary. My Journal is a story of a life that I will pass on to my son.
Why write? Why keep a record of your days, your thoughts, or activities? For a couple of reasons. First, and most important is that it provides an outlet to express your feelings. It is very therapeutic. Also, you are creating a written history of yourself that you can look back on and see the changes you have made in your life, the good, the bad, and the indifferent. A Journal is a gift to yourself, to express what ever you want, paste in it whatever you want, to read, and to reflect on about your life then and now. Keeping a journal is a way to tap into your inner feelings.
With pregnancy, so much is happening all at once! It is a very overwhelming time. Your body is changing, your role in your relationship with your partner will be changing, from lover and wife, to a mother! You will be concerned about those mothering skills. You will reflect on your own upbringing and how your experiences as a child will impact on you as a mother, or father. Writing about your experiences will give you new perspectives about your life. Read some of these onine diaries!
We often don't recognize our feelings. We surpress them, and as a result they get bigger, and then they jump out of no where, jumbled with other feelings, when we are having a disagreement with someone, or we just suppress them. They never go away.
Journaling is a way of coping with emotions. Journaling is a way to figure out what got you upset in the first place, or how you solved a problem, or it's a private place to praise yourself! As you begin to write you unravel your mind clearing it of pent up clutter perhaps, releasing tensions, and concerns. As you unload these feelings, you can gain valuable insights about yourself, and your life. A journal connects daily living with your inner-self. It is communication with yourself. A journal is self discovery.
Journaling Journey(JJ) Suggestions
2. Don't worry about what you write in it, or how it looks! Penmanship goes out the window here. Besides, no one else is going to see this book. Are they? Unless you want to share it with someone.
3. If you want to share parts of your Journal, be selective and share only with those you trust. These are your feelings!
4. Be Honest with yourself when you write.
5. Relax before you write. Go get a cup of coffee or tea and calm down, to discourage writer's block, or newbie jitters. Hey! Write about that!
6. Tell that inner voice, you know, the one that says your crazy for writing in a Journal, to take a trip somewhere while you are writing. We always feel strange doing new things. Don't give into the voice. Just start writing.
7. Always date your entries.
8. And...leave a pen in the book so you can find one to use when that thought darts across your mind................
Want to know more about journaling? Visit these sites:
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