My Journey with Journaling
Life has its seasons and days of rain or shine. Even though we may not want to remember the rainy days, we should. You might think, why would I want to remember the time I failed a test or the time I had a fight with my best friend? Feelings of anger, confusion, sadness and regret reignite in our thoughts as we look back on these memories, yet we shouldn’t forget its often overlooked counterpart – the lessons that come with it. These lessons allow for growth as it teaches us to be better people in every aspect of life. For instance, a fight with my best friend due to a simple misunderstanding taught me to be a better communicator, while a ‘C’ on a test taught me to be better at time management. In order to remember the growth I’ve experienced along the way, I tried journaling for 5 months. Here’s what it was like.
The first thing I learnt about journaling was that an entry didn’t have to be a well-worded, long essay; all it needed was to convey your feelings and thoughts at the time. I could write an one sentence entry on some days or an essay long entry on others and it was okay.
Journaling also taught me that a day is never as boring as you think. Some days may be less exciting than others, but there is always an event each day. It made me look at the little things in life that we should be grateful for. Things that we would normally see as basic necessities may be privileges to others, so regular events in our daily routine should be celebrated, as it wouldn’t hurt to be kinder to ourselves.
Besides that, writing down the events that occurred during the day allowed me to reflect on my thoughts and thus, realize any flaws in my thinking. It enabled me to discover why I was feeling those emotions, which in turn allowed me to gain clarity and grow as a person while also getting a better understanding of who I was and the kind of person I wanted to be.
Lastly, I learnt that slight inconsistencies are okay as long as you don’t give up. I wound up journaling every two to three days, which definitely could be improved. Despite that, I’m content with the rate I’m currently journaling in as it’s better to strive for progress over perfection.
In sum, I highly recommend giving journaling a try. It has certainly brought me mental clarity and growth, as well as a record of how irritable I can be during exam season, and I hope it will do the same for you.