Journaling Tips
by Thena Smith

Having always been a verbose person, the most difficult part of journaling for me is to make sure that I have spelled the word correctly! I am so thankful for PC journaling with spell check which enables me to type away at highest speed without fear of misspelling. My thoughts tend to flow rapidly from my heart and sometimes exceed the speed with which my fingers can get them to paper. In other words: I think faster than I type!

At least once or twice a day (and sometimes more) I receive requests for help on creating a special poem or helping someone with their journaling. The email or phone call usually begins with "I can't find the words to say what I want to say. Can you help me?" Then the person tells me wonderful stories about their adventure or their loved one. They have written the journaling in their heart, but they have trouble getting their feelings onto paper in a form that they feel is good enough.

I am a firm believer that whatever pours from your heart and soul is good enough to put down on paper. But I also know that we want our words to be in good form and grammatically correct so that others will enjoy them, and be proud to share those pages with others.

There are no rules or right and wrongs in journaling, but there are different types and styles of journaling:

1. Which "Person" are you going to use for your page? (Remember in English class I love, you love, he, she, or it loves)

First Person...Are you telling the story as it happened to you? If you are, then keep the entire story in first person except for any quotes you might want to use. "I love this photo of you in your 'Gator' shirt. I had to hide it to keep you from wearing it everyday!"

Second Person...."You loved this outfit and wore it every day that I would allow."

"When you got up in the morning the first thing you would do is to ask for your 'Gator' shirt. No matter how hard I tried to hide it, you found it and demanded to wear it. 'Gator' you would say and smile that great big adorable smile!"

Third Person...If you are writing the experience referring to the person in the photo, then stick to third person style. "Tracy loved this shirt and called it her 'Gator' shirt. No matter how many times I hid it, she would find it and bring it back to me demanding that she wear it."

2. What type of photos are you journaling?

The style of the photo usually dictates the style of journaling. Heritage pages might be more factual and formal, while photos of kids and pets playing in the sprinkler cry for fun titles and humorous relating of the story. There are, of course exceptions to the rule...for instance, I remember one of my photos of my great uncle in an old fashioned ensemble back in the 1800's where I could not resist the title "When Boys Wore Dresses". I have the type of family that does not consider this type of humor as sacrilege and I could get by with it. If I were doing the page for someone else as a gift, I would have chosen a more serious title...perhaps "Fashions of the 1800's"

3. What to do when at a loss for words

If you are creating a page and you just have nothing...leave it and come back to it later. When I am asked to create for someone that I don't know, I just breathe a little prayer and ask God to give me something that will bless them.

Sometimes when at a loss for words, or if you just really don't know much about the photo, the person or the event, a good choice of journaling is a good quote or poem. I love to write poetry, so many of my pages are created with the poem specific to the event. But the longer I live and breathe and write, the more I realize that experiences, good or bad are not original and confined to us. I have written and shared poems and quotes on both the happiest and saddest times of my life, and have had other people thank me for expressing what was in their heart.

When I first began sharing my work several years ago, people thought I didn't journal because I didn't share those pages. Then I realized that things that happened to me, were special to me, and touched me, also could apply to other lives as well. I began to share with other friends online, and as a result, rarely do I post a page from my personal album without journaling of some sort.

These are just a few thoughts to get you to consider journaling more on your pages if you haven't been. If you are already an avid journalist, your family and loved ones will thank you. As I look back on boxes of photos left by my grandmother, I love finding any information that she had written down, and I treasure any little bit of her handwriting. I am most guilty of computer journaling on my scrapbook pages, but I have left plenty of evidence of my handwriting in my stacks of poetry notebooks, etc.

The most important thing is to, first of all, make memories with your loved ones that you will want to journal. Take the time to live your life to the fullest and be a blessing to those around you. This will make your journaling come easier, as you write about things and people you love!

Thena