Keep a Journal, Not a Diary
February 10, 2009 by B J Keltz
The term “journaling” can confuse people. Different types of journals have popularity in different sectors: the creative journal, the therapeutic journal, the writer’s journal…all valuable uses of pen and paper, but confusing to someone just starting out.
In the simplest terms, to journal is to record something of yourself on paper. Official definitions include:
Merriam-Webster, definition C: a record of experiences, ideas, or reflections kept regularly for private use.
Thefreedictionary.com, definition A: A personal record of occurrences, experiences, and reflections kept on a regular basis.
Wordreference.com: a daily written word of (usually personal) experiences and observations.
A journal is a written record of experiences, ideas, reflections and observations. it is not just what you did, but how you feel about it, reacted to it, or what you thought. The term is often confused with “diary.” However, diary in the U.S. is used more akin to a datebook. (Diary in Europe is similar, though the term “diarist” can mean anything from keeping a datebook to keeping a journal).
Your journal is not a date book in which you record single line comments on your day’s activities, nor is it a diary in the common use of the word. Your journal is a window into your soul. Consider the contrast:
Diary/Date Book Entry: had lunch @ cafe so and such. Ate grilled chicken and made notes. Met a friend for drink after work and picked up the dry cleaning.
Journal Entry: I ate lunch alone today at the new cafe down the street. The atmosphere was so lively and the service so good that I had difficulty concentrating on my notes. My eyes kept wandering to the play of green foliage against mahogany wood, glossy with wax and care. I imagined the wait staff as perfectly trained to serve royalty…
You get the idea. Not that you ate lunch and where, but what you saw, felt, observed, and how the atmosphere relaxed or excited you, and the impressions you carried away with you.
The distinction is important. Your journal needs to contain your reactions…your observations and reflections (and feelings) about ideas, experiences, and events. It is your reactions to and feelings about events that will produce a written record of personal values, morals and beliefs…a road map of common threads and repeated errors or successes. IT is this type of record that reveals aspects of your personality and character.
If you have trouble writing in your journal, use a sentence prompt. You could easily fill an entire journal with the single prompt of “I feel happy when…” There are several good sites with writing prompts designed to help writers and journal keepers to get their pens moving. Don’t be afraid to start with a prompt, and don’t be afraid to continue writing after you feel like stopping. You might be surprised at what is there “beyond the wall.”
Journaling is an excellent way to process your life and emotions…a way to reflect and make sense of things. You are writing only for yourself, so feel free to cover any topic. Just remember the distinction between a diary entry and a journal entry. One will give you a record of what you did on a particular day. the other will give you a record of what you thought, felt, and learned that, even years later, can bring that moment fresh to your mind. Use your journal as a window into your mind and heart. It is, indeed, a window to your soul.
