J is for Journals

A few of my favorite upcycled journals from Etsy.

I started collecting journals before I actually started writing in them.

I kept a diary as a kid, faithfully recording the events of my day, until I stopped for no real reason when I was in my early 20s. Life got in the way, maybe.

Being a writer, I wanted to go back to journaling, so I’m not really sure why it took me so long to do it. I found really pretty upcycled journals on Easy, and I bought several of them, but I didn’t write in them. I put them on a shelf and left them there.

When I did start journaling again, I got myself a plain, spiral bound notebook, not wanting to write in a pretty journal. I’m not sure why I thought I shouldn’t scribble my thoughts in something nice, but I didn’t want to “ruin it.” I didn’t write much in my plain notebook, and journaling became something I made myself do because I think writers and therapists “should” keep a journal, instead of something I actually wanted to do. I kept trying to start a journaling habit, but it just didn’t stick.

Then one day, a friend of mine showed me a notebook he keeps with his favorite quotes. I loved the idea. I had done something similar as a kid, writing in quotes and my favorite bits of poetry or prose. For years, I’d been collecting quotes in my email, where they’d sit in the dark to never see the light of day again. Without hesitating, I grabbed one of my nice journals off the shelf, and started putting quotes into it. The blank pages were no longer waiting for words.

It felt right to fill those blank pages; my journals were finally fulfilling their purpose. While I still don’t have a journaling habit, I do journal pretty regularly now. Sometimes I write several times a day, and sometimes once a week. It just depends on how much I have to say. At this point, my journaling is often kind of like thinking on paper. I just write stuff down and afterward see what it was I had to say.

What’s the point of having something and not using it for it’s intended purpose? Honestly, I think it’s a little sad that I let those journals sit empty for as long as I did. So, I say: use that pretty journal, light the decorative candle, drink out of your crystal goblet. In my mind, things are meant to be enjoyed.

And besides, when I fill that pretty journal, that means I can go on Etsy to buy a new one. Right?