Meet Yourself Through Journaling

I am excited and nervous. I’ve recently sent out my Be Brave, Lose the Beige manuscript to a few publishers. This is the journal I have written and illustrated. Anyone interested in seeing a PDF version of Be Brave, Lose the Beige, just let me know in the comment section below. I realize the very mention of “journaling” elicits the following reactions- eye rolling, sighing, mutterings of “I wouldn’t know what to write” or “what a waste of my time!”  If you can overcome these biases, here are a few suggestions: 

–Write in longhand, stream of consciousness; try upside down, sideways, off the margins writing. See how liberating it can feel.

–Do not re-read the pages or allow others to read them. This is sacred space, a private place on which to complain or rejoice.

–Some journals pose questions for you to answer. Try posing questions of your own. Listen for the reply, it invariably comes.

In the process of writing, we discover our own identity, not just that of Mom, daughter or employee. In order to achieve a happy and fulfilling life, you have to know what you want and who you are. Meet yourself in your journal pages. Allow Be Brave, Lose the Beige to help.

Ideally Living

Running from meeting to meeting, checking off the to-dot list-that isn’t really living. Discovering the playful side of life. Spreading joy. Being colorful…clever…creative.

Now that’s living. “Be Brave, Lose the Beige” hopes to inspire and encourage people to live their lives creatively and with at least a little more fun. Now “Be Brave, Lose the Beige” is not only the name of my blog but also the name of a journal I’ve just finished writing and illustrating. Through the use of whimsical and (hopefully) humorous, sometimes tongue-in-cheek art images and questions, you can explore your interior self and discover what your ideal life might look like. If you would like a sneak peak of the journal, write me in the comment section below and I will send you a few pages.

Cruise Journaling

I’ve written a couple of blog posts about Journaling.  Journaling has become such an important part of my daily ritual over the past ten years, I don’t want to do without it. But I view this activity as a private one and don’t care to share it with anyone else.

A couple of weeks ago I was on a 50^th birthday cruise and shared a cabin with a friend. Each morning I would literally sneak out of our cabin, capture a cup of cappuccino and hunt for a secret space in which to write my thoughts as I contemplated my day, weekend, and life. (Quiet place on a cruise ship is an oxymoron, let me assure you). I had to laugh at myself as I settled into the giant theater (where no salsa music was playing and the view of the ocean was fabulous) at the lengths I would resort to just to be able to engage in this 45 minutes of me time.

Grab a spiral notebook and 15 minutes today and jot down a few random thoughts. Try this three times a week. See how it feels. Let me know one thing you discover.

Journaling Your Way to Your Ideal Life

 I believe we all need to choose to live more playfully.  Trying a new recipe can be creative; cultivating a patch of backyard dirt into a lovely garden;

wearing colorful socks; taking guitar lessons or a water color class.  These are all endeavors that can nurture a creative spirit – an essential aspect of our natures.   

One way to help discover what living ideally means is to put pen to paper.  Get a spiral notebook and spend 20 minutes, three times a week writing.  Do it when you are waiting in the carpool line or during your lunch hour.  Sit in the car during your daughter’s ballet practice.  Just write down whatever random thoughts come to mind.  There is no right or wrong way of journal writing.  Do it at 3 in the morning or 3 in the afternoon.  It’s all good. You will be surprised at how insightful these thoughts can be.  I’ve been a journal writer for ten years, ten years that have gradually transformed my life from being a professional in a very linear, left brain, field to being a full time artist and arts minister.  I’m convinced journaling has brought me to this place in my 55^th (oops, just turned 56) year.   

Go ahead, Be Brave.  Lose the Beige in your life!  Let your journal be your guide.