I enjoy and appreciate any and all prompts, as they give me another way to think about things. Perspective that I might not have opened my mind to. Whether I write them in my journal or not is irrelevant. I encourage them! (PS: I have been writing in a personal journal--a diary--since I was six years old. I have stacks & stacks of them and they rest right beside me while I'm sleeping, in the shelves at the head of my bed. Although I've taken long breaks from writing entries in years past, I am consistent with my daily morning practice now. My diary entry is a vital part of my day and my overall well-being.) Thank you for these posts. I love them. And especially love the image of the elephant!
Thank you so much for this comment! I'm hearing loud and clear that people want to be prompted. And I so enjoy this picture I now have in my mind of all your journals stored at the head of your bed! 😮 I love it, even though my journals do *not* live in a place of honour, and in fact most of them got torn up in 2017. I do regret a few of the ones I destroyed, but I had my reasons. And of course, I've amassed plenty more since then...
I don't think you should shy away from journaling prompts. I have a robust journaling practice (and have started incorporating more visual elements, inspired by you and other folks) - and I appreciate prompts that help me reflect in a different way (like chapters of life or mapping the body). To notice is a practice that we develop by learning to see through different lenses and we can all use more support with that. I'm developing a workshop with a friend right now that will use Zen teaching as a lens for developing creative practice habits... and some of the work you have posted here thus far is helping me think about what kind of work/practice we should incorporate. I might be reaching out to you for permission to steal at some point soon!
Thanks Megan. David and Jill have both told me they appreciate the journaling prompt aspect, too. My hesitation is twofold, I think... I don't want to be confined to making a specific "prompt" when maybe I feel like doing something else, and I also have a fear of losing people who aren't into journaling. I've already lost a number of people. I do understand that that's all part of it... you win some, you lose some. But it just adds to my uncertainty about the direction I want this to go in. I'll get it figured out, eventually!
As for whatever it is you want to steal, it's likely something I stole myself!
Dear Highly Sensitive Freak with Unreflected Worldview.... graphically this edition of Taking Note hits the ball out of the park for me. I love that elephant! That super long trunk - does it impart some kind of elephant super power? The eye, even though tiny seems to be smiling. And the shadow almost covering it's body....the shadow of it's ear? I don't know, but it gives it a weight. I also love the picture on the opening page of your first journal, it just seems absolutely .....right. 1980! It's a historical artifact! As for the question of journaling prompts, I like to do things. One of my favourite posts was the chapters of your life post.
Hmmm... good question, Anne! I think what I'm trying to say there is that for me, writing in my journal was instrumental in providing myself with support I wasn't getting elsewhere. If that makes sense. It's impossible to know who I would have been without it, but I've always sensed that it prevented me from getting lost. With journal writing, I learned who I was and I gained confirmation that my observations were valid and my intuition often correct. I created a world where only I belonged, but it was heartening to belong *somewhere*. I'm not saying I'm all self-actualized or anything---far from it---but I do feel that I know who I am, and sadly I think many people can't say that. And for that I can thank journal writing.
I enjoy and appreciate any and all prompts, as they give me another way to think about things. Perspective that I might not have opened my mind to. Whether I write them in my journal or not is irrelevant. I encourage them! (PS: I have been writing in a personal journal--a diary--since I was six years old. I have stacks & stacks of them and they rest right beside me while I'm sleeping, in the shelves at the head of my bed. Although I've taken long breaks from writing entries in years past, I am consistent with my daily morning practice now. My diary entry is a vital part of my day and my overall well-being.) Thank you for these posts. I love them. And especially love the image of the elephant!
Thank you so much for this comment! I'm hearing loud and clear that people want to be prompted. And I so enjoy this picture I now have in my mind of all your journals stored at the head of your bed! 😮 I love it, even though my journals do *not* live in a place of honour, and in fact most of them got torn up in 2017. I do regret a few of the ones I destroyed, but I had my reasons. And of course, I've amassed plenty more since then...
I don't think you should shy away from journaling prompts. I have a robust journaling practice (and have started incorporating more visual elements, inspired by you and other folks) - and I appreciate prompts that help me reflect in a different way (like chapters of life or mapping the body). To notice is a practice that we develop by learning to see through different lenses and we can all use more support with that. I'm developing a workshop with a friend right now that will use Zen teaching as a lens for developing creative practice habits... and some of the work you have posted here thus far is helping me think about what kind of work/practice we should incorporate. I might be reaching out to you for permission to steal at some point soon!
Thanks Megan. David and Jill have both told me they appreciate the journaling prompt aspect, too. My hesitation is twofold, I think... I don't want to be confined to making a specific "prompt" when maybe I feel like doing something else, and I also have a fear of losing people who aren't into journaling. I've already lost a number of people. I do understand that that's all part of it... you win some, you lose some. But it just adds to my uncertainty about the direction I want this to go in. I'll get it figured out, eventually!
As for whatever it is you want to steal, it's likely something I stole myself!
Dear Highly Sensitive Freak with Unreflected Worldview.... graphically this edition of Taking Note hits the ball out of the park for me. I love that elephant! That super long trunk - does it impart some kind of elephant super power? The eye, even though tiny seems to be smiling. And the shadow almost covering it's body....the shadow of it's ear? I don't know, but it gives it a weight. I also love the picture on the opening page of your first journal, it just seems absolutely .....right. 1980! It's a historical artifact! As for the question of journaling prompts, I like to do things. One of my favourite posts was the chapters of your life post.
I love that you said the elephant's eye seems to be smiling. That makes ME smile 😻
You mentioned this twice BA and I’m curious to hear more what you mean: that you have used your journal to create your self!
Hmmm... good question, Anne! I think what I'm trying to say there is that for me, writing in my journal was instrumental in providing myself with support I wasn't getting elsewhere. If that makes sense. It's impossible to know who I would have been without it, but I've always sensed that it prevented me from getting lost. With journal writing, I learned who I was and I gained confirmation that my observations were valid and my intuition often correct. I created a world where only I belonged, but it was heartening to belong *somewhere*. I'm not saying I'm all self-actualized or anything---far from it---but I do feel that I know who I am, and sadly I think many people can't say that. And for that I can thank journal writing.
Thank you B.A.! This is very similar to my experience!
Well Anne, I hope someday you'll tell me more about your experience! I'm interested to hear.