This & That: A Simpler Way to Journal
This & That: A Simpler Way to Journal
Hello, readers!
In today’s edition of the newsletter I have some thoughts on journaling, a mini list about bookish thrillers, and some great links to peruse. Let’s get to it.
Something I’m Thinking About: Minimalist Journaling
I’ve always been far more intrigued by the idea of journaling than the reality. I’ve journaled in fits and starts for most of my life and haven’t ever landed on a routine that keeps me going.
That may have changed in the last couple of months, though. It started with our family’s Spring Break trip to Utah. Each day, I jotted down a few bullet points about what we did — the highlights and things I didn’t want to forget. There wasn’t a larger goal in mind, I just wanted to be able to remember this trip a few years down the road.
Once we were back home, I wondered if this simple methodology of writing a few bullet points each day would be a sustainable and fulfilling way to journal.
After a couple of months, I can say that I’ve quite enjoyed it! I have a Google Doc for each month and a heading for each day followed by 2-5 bullet points of memories, never more than 100 words and usually less.
There’s occasionally something truly eventful, but much of the time it’s the more mundane things like a remark about the weather, what I’m reading that day, our tasty dinner, or maybe something funny that came out of one of the kids’ mouths.
It’s a very non-intimidating, non-formal way to establish a journaling habit, if you’re interested in that sort of thing. I love not thinking about prose or grammar at all (which I inevitably do when writing in a standard journal). Give it a shot and let me know what you think.