I love to write and yet I have never been one to keep a journal, this year I have made a commitment to do so. What prompted this New Year’s thought you might ask? Memory triggers.
While putting up the Christmas tree each ornament brought back memories of a Christmas past. Not just the Christmas but reminders of the year, places visited, important events. I have always tried to purchase a new ornament each year, not just any ornament and not bought for the look. I try to find an ornament from places we travel, a reminder of fun and interesting places. Memory triggers.
The older ornaments have a special meaning as they are the ones my children made when they were small. I even have an old plastic Santa ornament that was mine as a child, not going to mention how old that one is! Now I get to tell my grandchildren what each ornament means, the memories they hold. Memories that bring smiles and laughter. Someday though no one will remember the importance of these memories so I have decided to journal these memories and new events for future generations.
I am a sentimental soul and find it hard to part with things that hold meaning. I keep Christmas and birthday cards, letters and all the artwork from my children’s school years. I enjoy looking back through them from time to time. My children’s baby books where I chronicled every event no matter how small, the excitement I felt at each new achievement reflected in my writing.
As I looked through all of these “memory triggers” I pondered why haven’t I kept a journal? Someday, in the distant future, a great great great grandchild might want to get to know the ancestor from long ago. I want to give them the opportunity to visit the past, no matter how boring it may seem.
So in the interest of posterity I will add keeping a journal to my New Years list. Just as photograph albums are a thing of the past, everybody now stores the photos on a device or the “cloud”, hand written journals, letters and cards are becoming a thing of the past. Instead of a thank you card you now receive an email or a text thanking you. The digital format is definitely more convenient but consider how many have lost their photo’s and documents when a device crashes or malfunctions.
I enjoy the convenience of Kindle reading but there are still some books I have to purchase. I still like the feel of actually holding a book in my hands, the smell of old books and seeing books that have touched me, educated me or just entertained me on my overly large bookcase.
The digital age is wonderful but let us not forget to step back in the past, keep a handwritten journal, write a letter, send a card, buy a hard copy book. Someone, someday may thank you for it. Who knows, they might be an author and find inspiration and ideas from your writing.
