The ironic thing is, I have several of my grandmother's diaries, and ALL of my mother's. Mom started keeping a diary/journal when she was eleven years old, back in 1925, and has something recorded for every day until she died in April 2000. For the last week or two of her life, she was unable to write, and asked me and her LNA's to record for her.

Grandma and Mom never wrote much for personal thoughts and feelings, just the minutiae of daily life. I've so much enjoyed reading through them, laughing and crying as I glimpsed into their daily lives. Little treasures, such as Grandma writing simply "heard from Wilbur today", back during WWII when my Dad (Wilbur) was reported missing in action and they spent agonizing days not knowing if he was indeed lost at sea.

I will probably save my "diaries", and my daughter can either read through them and find out when we saw the first hummingbird and how often we went to Walmart, or she can recycle them. I won't care, I'll be dead.

I don't journal.

I have a friend who has journaled for decades. She often uses it as a prayer journal - a conversation with, or about God and her faith. Sometimes, when we meet (we are in a small group that meets together regularly to share and pray with each other), she sometimes shares things that she has written.

She has kept all of her journals from many years back. She has requested that, when she dies, that her family destroy them without reading them.

She is a person with much wisdom and class. I know that her descendants would love to benefit from reading her many thoughts, life questions and whatever answers to prayer she has received. I expect that it may be difficult for them to follow her wishes.

I have sometimes thought about doing something similar. For brief periods of time, in the past, I have journaled my prayers, often using Scripture and adapting it just enough to fit my personal life. When I've done that, I've found it meaningful. However, it isn't something that I've often taken the time to do.

Regarding journals that relate and explore feelings about others, I agree with those who say that they wouldn't want to write anything that might hurt others in the future. I don't know what I would do with such journals if I wrote them. I don't expect that I would often find the need to go back and re-read them, so, would I also just throw them away? And, if so, what would be the purpose of writing them in the first place? Maybe it would be therapeutic at the time?

My DH and I have sometimes written letters to each other if we are in a conflict that is difficult to resolve. That way, we cannot yell at each other about it. It also is helpful to put thoughts on paper, sort of like a journal.

Interesting question to think about, Sally.

I never used to keep a journal until I became ill. I now keep one and record how bad my pain has been, if I have had any new symtpoms etc but I am always forgetting to write in it lol !!!

My Doctor told me that the journals are useful for him and the other doctors as they can keep up to date with how I have been doing and see if they need to increase any medications etc.

I also keep a Blog (see siggy line if you're interested in reading it) where I write about how I have been doing and what I have been up to. I used to be addicted to it and write in it all the time but find that I never seem to have any time to keep up with it really now lol !

Interesting thread, thanks for starting!

I found a way of journaling that's really therapeutic : I write 3 pages of just free thinking, no proofing or corrections, just fast free- associating. I don't do it every day, just when dealing with some issue. What always happens is by the time I've written 1 & 1/2 pages, it's been worked out! I swear! Then I generally destroy it because I don't want anyone else reading it or I may keep it in a notebook and hide it for a while, destroying it later. It only works if I'm being totally honest and not worrying about anyone seeing it.

I kept a symptom and injection journal when I was first diagnosed. As for personal journalling, I did it a lot as a kid. I love to write, and I'd love to write a book one day, but I don't journal as much as I should. I even bought a beautiful one to motivate me. It's leather-bound, made in Florence (my favorite place in the world) with the three muses on the cover. It's very beautiful, but honestly, most of my days seem too boring to memorialize!

When I first started in limbo, I did do the sx journal. Very abrupt stuff on a appointment book layout. I just burned them all, getting ready to move. I don't want to drag my old life with me to the new life.

When I was a kid I did a couple diaries, but almost all of it was fiction, lol. Always been a writer.


B2Y - I like the way your mom and Grandmother did their journals. If I ever pick it up that's how I'd go about it.