Dear Diary

I attended a wonderful wedding this month. The father of the bride made a toast that was both funny and poignant. At the rehearsal dinner he spoke about his daughter and referenced observations he's made in his journal over time, as his daughter was growing from a child into an amazing woman.

On the day of the wedding the father's references to his journal become fodder for jokes, all centered around the expression “dear diary.” This did not stop him from making his toast--a toast that combined laughter and tears as well as references to his “diary” without apology. It was a very memorable speech.

Through the years I have heard numerous dismissive comments made about keeping a journal as though it was some egotistical practice that encouraged bad behavior and whining. Yes it can be, but so can conversation. So should we not converse ever, since it can be such a waste of time?

I took a seminar from an American naval pilot who had been a prisoner of war in North Vietnam for a number of years. When he returned home, life as he had once known it was now far different. He had to completely rebuild his life. He taught in the Navy and he lectured. The once thing that stuck with my from his story and his seminar was this: "Unwritten thought is unfocused thought.”

One can talk about plans and dreams, taking action or making changes. If anything is to ever actually happen though, it's got to get our of your head. Get it on paper, on a screen or in a file to be reviewed, altered, and revisited. Until then, it hasn't begun. Talking and doing are two different things.

Journals are a great tool for fueling these ideas. Journaling focuses us, allows reflection, and it allows honesty and truth. We can converse with ourselves in a journal, take notice of and congratulate change and progress. A journal captures a moment, a journey, and it let’s us participate more fully in our life. Our history unfolds right before us.

I've heard plenty of excuses not to write in a journal. “I can’t write every day, no time,” is a popular one. But it's not about discipline, it's about you; do what you can. All you need is paper, fingers, and willingness and eventually--oddly enough--it becomes a friend you want to visit, and revisit. Your history of focused thought is recorded. These journals can not only be a wonderful aid in your current life but a help when you reread them in the future, like the father's toast at his daughter's wedding.

Consider taking the time.

We'd like to hear from you about your journaling practices, thoughts, or maybe why you think journals are a huge waste of time. Whatever is swimming around in your brain, we want you to share it with us! Post your comments.

-Rita

Great Places To Leave A Note

Your kid's lunchbox
Scribble a sweet, non-embarrassing line to let your child letting them know how much you care, and bury it somewhere between the PB&J and carrot sticks.

Your honey's coat pocket
Keep romance alive, say you're sorry, or make the one you love laugh out loud. It's all about the little things.

Your bathroom mirror
Write something encouraging to yourself that you can't miss reading every day. Too cheese-ball for you? Scrawl out something for the person you share the bathroom with instead. Dry erase markers work on any mirror so you don't have to limit yourself to the bathroom.

The bottom of a receipt
Your waiter (or waitress) probably doesn't hear all that often how much his work is appreciated. Make his day by telling him why you enjoyed his service so much (we know, this one probably won't happen all that often).

On your checks
Here's a place that already provides the space for a brief note, though people hardly seem use anymore. Try to have some fun with this one! For example, if you write a check to your babysitter, add at the bottom: “For: 5 hours of quiet bliss. Thanks for sitting on my babies.” Anything for a smile, right?

Your visitor's suitcase
So long this doesn't violate anyone's personal space or privacy, find a way to sneak a handwritten thought into your houseguest's luggage before their departure. Tell your guest how much you enjoyed her company or that you can't wait for her next return.

The inside of a book or journal
When you give someone a book or journal, add your personal thoughts on the inside cover. Or, if you are willing to take the time, read through the book and make your own notes throughout the entire thing that speak directly to the recipient. If that's not personal, what is?

Car windows
So long this method of communication is suitable to the receiver of your message, go wild with it. There are special markers to write on cars with. This method of note leaving is colorful, fun, and pretty surprising to a person who's no longer in high school.

In a shoe
The possibility for content is endless. Write whatever to whomever and slip it in a shoe you know they'll wear soon. They're bound to find it.

On a calendar
Insert your own small reminders, expressions or thoughts throughout a calendar or datebook and gift it to someone. They can look forward to your notes all year long.

Behind the service counter
If someone you know is a regular at a specific cafe, bar or restaurant, leave a note with the staff to deliver to this person. Maybe even work it out with the establishment to pay for this person's drink or meal that day.

X Marks The Spot

Posted by Rita

Newsflash

The July 22 edition of The Week reported that Indiana has stopped requiring schools to teach 3^rd graders cursive. Instead they will focus on keyboard skills.  Is there a future or a need for cursive?

To Cursive Or Not To Cursive?

The standard joke over the years has been if you’re handwriting is illegible, “You must be a doctor.” That joke has a serious origin. Many of us have needed cursive translators, for real.  The keyboard, our digital pen, allows clear communication of our needs and thoughts. I adopted print over cursive because no one, I mean no one could read my handwriting—including myself.

The Write Way

If they cut cursive out now, perhaps print will be next. Then we can all sign with an X again, like in the days when so many people could not read or write. Could we possibly return to that scary past?

Writing by hand is making a personal appearance on paper. Think of the wonderful letters throughout history that tell us about our personal and collective histories, love stories and war stories and the stories of mankind. Oh wait, now they will all be saved on email (or will they?) They will all look, smell and feel the exact same, not like a letter.

The Pen Mightier Than The Keyboard?

The article from The Week states, “Studies have found that handwriting boosts fine motor skills in children, and writing things out by hand enhances comprehension and learning.”

The cognitive skill and hand coordination that comes with the use of a pencil or pen is tactile tickling of the brain for thoughts, for dreams, for a personalized history that won’t ever crash or be deleted.

What do you think?