[.more.about.journaling.]

This should have been posted right after my earlier post about end-of-year journaling, while also working on the graphics, I have always found that journaling is just so much fun. It’s like getting to know yourself in the journey, know what inspires you in the daily life, and since I incorporate creative journaling I’m sometimes amazed by the hidden talents I discovered along the way… talk about self esteem!

My journaling style, like everybody else’s I guess, continues to evolve day by day. Somehow, I have the tendency to repeat patterns, recreate pages and rewrite words that I like from previous journals. They make me feel good! So I have certainly the excuse for that :-)

So, when it comes to physical journals (with notebooks and collages inside), I would tear the pages I love from old journals and I would with no doubt destroy the remaining old stories. Ha! I confessed some old journals were filled with not-so-feel-good words, they were from the days I haven’t been yet aware of good-vibe creative journaling.



Now, I promised myself to, in daily basis:

- gather inspiration, notice good signs and coincidences and fascinating things around me ‘right now’ – and indeed, life is so fascinating. and be grateful.

This one is very interesting. and I think I will take the word ‘fascination’ as my theme for 2010. It occurred to me when one day I happened to be irritated by a situation, and instead of complaining, suddenly I just said to my friend that the situation was ‘fascinating’. As a consequence, my brain kind of automatically worked on some ways to find reasons why that particular situation was fascinating. It felt almost instantly lightened rather than stressful. So I know it works, hopefully I will be able to remember that all the time :-)

- write only ‘positive talk’ in my journal. this may mean writing one positive affirmation or interesting quote a day. with collage, cutouts of images from magazines, newspapers, or printouts from the internet. being grateful is the most positive talk of all!

- monitor the state of my spirit. list what happened before during the day / night and check those that boost my spirit and find a way to tweak the other situations. Pray-raining is currently my favorite that I learned from Jeannette Maw. It’s an enjoyable exercise to tell good stories, thus keeping your spirit high! be grateful.

- keep track of how I nourish and take care of my body. you are what you eat, they say. and I noticed I feel good when I eat well. I walk at least 1 hour a day (favorite exercise!), and while walking, listen to favorite pieces of music, walking meditation or audiobooks.

- write down my purchases, giveaways and things I receive during the day. they are signs of abundance. the very thing to be grateful for. so be grateful for them.

- find a unique theme, such as write one recipe a day, etc. I collect one or two leaves I found on the street a day (inspired by Linnaeus!). be grateful for each find.

- practice writing by re-writing interesting articles from magazine or lines from books. I’ve learned that my brain learns the fastest when my other senses take simultaneous supporting actions. I opt for articles from travel magazines. be grateful for finding this excellent way to learn.

- what else…oh yes, note the progress of a project. I think it’s a very famous advice to break down any big goal into small bits and take one step a day to tackle it. celebrate any progress, however small, with gratitude.

- remind myself that ‘when in doubt, just do it! we’ll learn along the way’ – and believe there’s always support from God, the Universe, you name it. be grateful.

Wow, isn’t journaling fascinating? And now I know I’m a big fan of creative, multi-media journaling too. I’m grateful for all those creative spirits who invented ways to teach us to live this fascinating life. We’re all fascinating work in progress. For that I’m grateful :-)



Favorite advice on journaling:

By Jill Badonsky the author of Awe-Manac, The Daily Dose of Wonder: "Love is a many splendored thing but, as your spell-check will tell you, “splendored” is not a word. And YOU can make up words too. Coffee is a many caffeinated thing, naps are a many enjoyabled thing, dark chocolate is a many essentialled thing, whatever. Moreover, also, and besides optional grammar is elective during the initial creative of processes."