Healing
the Heart
The
Joy of Journalling
by Marie Nantes,
M.Ed
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The
journal is not only beneficial to us personally but can become
a means of communication between us and our family or friends.
How excited children (whether young or adult) become when they
discover a journal written by an elderly relative! As they turn
the pages, they gain insight into their loved one's experiences
and behaviour. The journal becomes a bond between the generations.
As it was written it expanded the writer's knowledge of self and
its legacy is a greater understand and appreciation by those who
‘knew' the writer. What a beautiful gift to leave future
generations.
Journaling
over a period of time offers many benefits. It allows us to review
our lives for a period of weeks, months or in some cases, even
years. It brings to mind the enriched lives we lead as we celebrate
achievements, remember new friends and experiences or grieve the
loss of a loved one.
In
addition to the reflective journal there is also the memory journal.
This type of writing simply summarizes the events of a time period
for the purpose of remembering dates, keeping business data or
for retrieving professional information. This type of journal
is similar to note taking but is valuable for those who prefer
pen and paper to the keyboard for keeping records. These journals
do not contain personal reflection and are not instrumental to
personal growth, but often lead to insights into professional
trends.
In
some cases writers begin keeping a daily personal journal but
as time progresses they add reactions and goals to their writing
so consequently their journal grows into the reflective journal
which I feel is so beneficial in helping to define who we are.
Whether
writers choose the more traditional journal forms or the reflective
journal, they will discover that writing down their experiences
will not only clarify them but ultimately lead to a greater clarification
of who they are themselves and isn't that what this journey of
ours is about discovering who we are and what we are about?
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