Benefits of Journaling

Bottles at Sea

One thing that is really cool about the internet, is you can send your bottle out to sea.  Maybe nobody cares at all right now, but someday they may.

Benefits of Writing

Journaling is not about remembering the past, but making
sure you change the things that don't work in the future. 

I have kept a journal for most of my life.  It helps me to organize my thoughts and sort out how I feel.  My opinion always changes with new input, and I reserve the right to change my opinion at any time.

Sometimes I write shit that makes no sense at all.  We are our own worst critic so we must not let it scare us when we embarrass ourselves.

What if my journal somehow found its way online? Some hacker thought it was a funny read so he uploads it to Reddit and half the world knew my deepest "secrets" before I woke up.

I certainly have not done anything that has not already been done in human history.  We all go about doing things in a different way, yet do so many of the same things. I suppose that if someone found my writings I would hope it might help them understand whatever perplexes them in their own lives. I would hope it would bring them strength to know that they are not alone in their struggles. I would hope it gives them a good nights sleep knowing they are not the only one that feels as they do.

Clearer Hindsight

The black boxes of the old days were written
 by a human responsible for the ship and crew.

I started writing in my journal when I was in my early 20's on the advise of a psychologist, and inspired by Captain Kirk of the USS Enterprise.

A captains log contained the story of a ship.  It was the earliest black box.  By it you could discern human behaviors and the overall state of a ships moral, as well as the captains integrity and sanity. Only if the log was ever recovered of course.

Whats the Purpose?

My journal remains mostly unedited ramblings of thoughts and opinions mixed with documented events and people from specific times of my life. Life gets busy as we navigate through it. Sometimes things move so quickly we forget times of events such as losing a job, losing a loved one, or starting a new job.  The reality is that I have no reason to read what I have written very often.  Life is continuously moving forward and I have little time to wonder how I can change what I can't.  Your journal helps you over time to put into words what you think you are feeling.  Sorting things out will help you to move forward gracefully and steady.  Your emotions will be more calm, your integrity protected, your alibi documented, and your troubles written to paper and out of your memory.  Your sleep will be calmer and your memory will be free to take in new inputs.  You will pay attention to details more, smell the roses more often, and see the lanes more clearly.