since the weather didn't provide for sunbathing, i spent the day yesterday doing some spring cleaning.
i worked on my room... but mostly my closet.
i pulled everything out.
sorted it.
got rid of some of it.
and then organized it to all fit back in.
of course i could have probably done it much quicker than an entire day but i tend to find things from my past that take me on a trip down memory lane.
i found myself stopping for an especially long time when i found all my past journals.
the first one started at age eight and they were fairly consistent through out the years until now.
i was surprised at how much i have already forgotten about my past. you know, the little things. it made me feel old. but it also made me really glad i had documented these memories. memories that throughout my busy life had been set on a shelf in my mind and have since then been collecting dust year after year.
however, there were plenty of instances where i found myself laughing & thinking.... do i really want people to possibly read these one day?!
what will they think of the crazy/spontaneous things my friends and i did such as stealing my parents car while they were on a date or sleeping and going to wendy's (on several occasions) when i didn't even have my license!
(i have already told my parents about taking the car. i figured that since it's several years later and since i didn't get caught by the cops or in an accident, they can't really do anything about it anymore ;)
or what about the times where i was pouring out my heart about my worries & cares? do i want people to read those as well?
i noticed several times i wrote in my journal "i don't even know why i just wrote about that, cause i don't really want anyone to read it later!" so maybe i should just burn them when i'm old?
but maybe they will mean something to someone for one reason or another. i don't know who will get a hold of my journals when my life is done. but i guess it doesn't matter cause i'll be gone anyway, right?
i would love to have journals to read from my ancestors. that give a glimpse into what life was like when they grew up from their point of view. to read things that give me a better understanding of who they were, the things they liked doing, the hard times they got through, their happiest moments, etc.
and although i love the option of blogging for much quicker writing and not to mention pictures! i still think there is something special about things written by the hand of the author.
it seems more personal and real.
i hope to continue writing little journal entries here & there for even just myself. to reminisce the next time i clean out my closet.
have any of you kept journals? what do you think about people reading them once you are gone?
They become the compost for the book you are going to write. I remember a movie about Jackie Kennedy that ended with her dying and her butler burning all her papers in the fireplace-it all seemed so tragic. Next time I see you I will lend you a book called "Writing the Bones" about how critical it is to always have a notebook to write in everyday! (Oh I can only dream!)
ReplyDeleteI want to hear more of these stories from your teenage years! I can't stand the thought of other people reading my journals...though I do wish my ancestors left behind some juicy stuff for me to read...--Katelyn
ReplyDeletenice post. i think i would die if people ever read 90% of my journal! so silly. but i haven't decided what to do with them yet.
ReplyDeletehaha I know right?! I would die if someone read the stuff that I write down in those. Thats why I decided that I would write a book of all the good memories and some of the bad and put it into something that I might let others read. :) you should write one too. Its fun to compile all that stuff into one long story of how you got to be who you are today. think about it :)
ReplyDeletegood times though! haha we were so crazy!! miss it!
I know what you mean. I was just thinking about burning mine. But I want to read yours:)
ReplyDelete