Raining Petals

Monday, February 6, 2012

Writing in the Present to Remember Our Past in the Future

My friend, Lisa, just reminded me the importance of journal-ing, even the smallest things in life. After all, most of our days are made up of uneventful little tasks. While reading Lisa's posts I recalled reading in the journals of my grandparents or my mom or my dad. Reading my father's journal entries introduced me to a side of him that I would never have known had I not had glimpses of it in his writing. His writings of my mother are romantic and sweet. His testimony of the Gospel unwavering. While his actions in life have shown me his love of the Gospel (strict church attendance, valiance in his callings, etc). ...the words he wrote were even more powerful.  He can write things that he can never say out loud. I am thankful for those moments reading his thoughts. It has really helped me understand a little better who this complex character, my dad, is. Haha...and now I am laughing because I am not sure he knows I have read these things. I was a snoopy child. Most likely  looking for something in my parent's room and stumbling upon his missionary journals and sitting down for a good read. I probably should have asked.

Lisa challenged her readers to write something everyday. She said not to worry about pictures or the perfectness of the post. Forget about trying to witty and amusing and just write. So I am extending her challenge on. It is important. The brethren of the church have always stressed journal keeping. and today I think I realized why...just a little...thinking back on the moments I have had reading the thoughts of my ancestors and families.

On Saturday, 20 June 1942, Anne Frank, a young Jewish girl who eventually died in the Holocaust, wrote the following in her personal journal: “I haven’t written for a few days, because I wanted first of all to think about my diary. It’s an odd idea for someone like me to keep a diary; not only because I have never done so before, but because it seems to me that neither I—nor for that matter anyone else—will be interested in the unbosomings of a thirteen-year-old schoolgirl. Still, what does that matter? I want to write, but more than that, I want to bring out all kinds of things that lie buried deep in my heart” (Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl [1952], 2).


If you still need more convincing on the importance of journal writing and record keeping then LDS.org can offer you many. That is where I found the above reference to Anne Frank. How profound right? 


http://www.lds.org/ensign/1999/09/why-write-it?lang=eng&query=keeping+journal This talk by Brad Wilcox gives many reasons why it is important to write about our lives. It is more than writing for our ancestors. It is about discovering who we are and providing an outlet for us to think and create. The process allows us to work through struggles and process where we are at in our lives. The last post I wrote about my slump was not one I wanted to write. In fact, I resisted it. At the urging of my sister I finally sat down to try and put words to what I was feeling. By the end of writing the post I felt 100% better and was sure I actually did not need to write the post...a conclusion I could not have come to without actually writing it. Make sense? :)

So thank you Lisa for once again prompting me to "put pen to paper". I need to stop waiting for a light bulb to come on to write and just do it. My memories depend on it.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Once I started blogging strictly for me (in December), I found it so freeing and enjoyable. I don't feel like I have to record every moment or capture every memory on camera. Or even edit myself or my pictures. It's just fun. And I like keeping it real. I have found enjoyment in it that I thought I had lost. And, I reread my older posts and they aren't as lively as my most recent ones so that makes me feel like I am doing something right.
Excellent post.

Lisa said...

Yeah! Thanks Laura! I sat down to write something before bed and then thought, maybe I'll just surf and skip this one night. Dedicated, aren't I? I'm glad I stopped by your blog first to help keep me committed.