A woman
in harmony
with her spirit
is like
a river flowing.
She goes
where she will
without pretense
and arrives
at her destination,
prepared
to be herself
and
only
herself.
Maya Angelou
My new 5 year journal next to my grandmother's.
When my beloved grandma died my dad inherited this 5 year diary she had. She wrote in it nearly every day. She missed most of one year but the years she did write she hardly missed a day. I loved getting to know my younger grandma through her writing. The phrases she used, the friends she had and the movies she saw. I learned that she rode her bike a lot and loved to play ping pong (Grandma and Grandpa had a ping pong table and pool table when I was young). I only wished she'd written more details. My dad and step mom let me borrow the diary and I read every page. When they saw how much I treasured it they let me keep it and it's truly one of my most treasured possessions. My grandma wrote this diary in pencil so I fear that in time I won't be able to read the words as they are fading.
Do not write in pencil in your journal!
The last couple of years of my grandma's diary is when she met and married my grandfather. They were pretty young and he went off to serve in world war II. It's crazy to think about that time they were living in. I was surprised by how insecure my grandma was about my grandpa, at times writing that she worried he wasn't thinking of her and didn't love her. The diary ends when she thinks she might be pregnant.
I was like....WHAT? You're going to stop writing now and not tell me if you are pregnant?
But then I realized I could do the math,
and yes indeed,
she was pregnant with my uncle Dennis.
I recently looked at her diary again and was surprised by something I had missed before.
At the very end of the book is a list of pet names and a location.
I am assuming these were written or said to her by my grandpa
while he was away and she kept track of them.
But maybe it's something different. I can only guess.
Dumpling.....New Zealand
Darling.....Australia
My sweet darling.....Scotland
Honey.....Guam
And on and on....
How adorable is that!!
When my daughter gave me my 5 year journal my for birthday I was excited to begin my own commitment of writing so that my grandchildren will someday read about my life in a fun way. I will try to remember to include details about this time, things we've done and the people in my life who influence me. The movies that are popular, technology changes (boy, won't they laugh at that some day) and the mundane daily rituals we have. With the journal lying on my nightstand it's been easy to jot a few lines down every night. It only takes a moment. But it has inspired me to take more time to journal write. I wrote in my journal last week and realized that in 2012 I only wrote one time!
One time!
That's terrible. That is going to change.
So though I do not make new year's resolutions, I do sometimes make goals and this is my goal:
To write nightly in my 5 year journal.
To journal at least once a week.
When my beloved grandma died my dad inherited this 5 year diary she had. She wrote in it nearly every day. She missed most of one year but the years she did write she hardly missed a day. I loved getting to know my younger grandma through her writing. The phrases she used, the friends she had and the movies she saw. I learned that she rode her bike a lot and loved to play ping pong (Grandma and Grandpa had a ping pong table and pool table when I was young). I only wished she'd written more details. My dad and step mom let me borrow the diary and I read every page. When they saw how much I treasured it they let me keep it and it's truly one of my most treasured possessions. My grandma wrote this diary in pencil so I fear that in time I won't be able to read the words as they are fading.
Do not write in pencil in your journal!
The last couple of years of my grandma's diary is when she met and married my grandfather. They were pretty young and he went off to serve in world war II. It's crazy to think about that time they were living in. I was surprised by how insecure my grandma was about my grandpa, at times writing that she worried he wasn't thinking of her and didn't love her. The diary ends when she thinks she might be pregnant.
I was like....WHAT? You're going to stop writing now and not tell me if you are pregnant?
But then I realized I could do the math,
and yes indeed,
she was pregnant with my uncle Dennis.
I recently looked at her diary again and was surprised by something I had missed before.
At the very end of the book is a list of pet names and a location.
I am assuming these were written or said to her by my grandpa
while he was away and she kept track of them.
But maybe it's something different. I can only guess.
Dumpling.....New Zealand
Darling.....Australia
My sweet darling.....Scotland
Honey.....Guam
And on and on....
How adorable is that!!
When my daughter gave me my 5 year journal my for birthday I was excited to begin my own commitment of writing so that my grandchildren will someday read about my life in a fun way. I will try to remember to include details about this time, things we've done and the people in my life who influence me. The movies that are popular, technology changes (boy, won't they laugh at that some day) and the mundane daily rituals we have. With the journal lying on my nightstand it's been easy to jot a few lines down every night. It only takes a moment. But it has inspired me to take more time to journal write. I wrote in my journal last week and realized that in 2012 I only wrote one time!
One time!
That's terrible. That is going to change.
So though I do not make new year's resolutions, I do sometimes make goals and this is my goal:
To write nightly in my 5 year journal.
To journal at least once a week.
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