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A FINE CUSHION FOR OLD AGE
11-29-09
I once heard that we should cherish all of our
happy moments because they make a fine cushion for old age. I would add
this thought: the best way to capture those happy moments is by keeping
a personal journal.
I once spoke on journal-keeping at a church and the title of my talk was
“How to Save your Soul for $12.37.”
Now that may sound strange if you think our soul is something we take to
heaven but the New Testament Greek word for “soul” means “the real
self.” So anything that helps you find your real self must be very
important and nothing has helped me find the pieces of my real self more
than keeping my journal.
Something like $12.37 is about what I spent to set up my first journal
which bought me a notebook, dividers for the months of the year, and 31
dividers for the days of a month.
I wrote two entirely different kinds of things in my journal. One is my
daily activities and the other is my thoughts on life, love and similar
spiritual subjects.
Writing on spiritual thoughts definitely helps us find our true self but
so do the activities. Where we spend our time and the people we spend it
with tell us a lot about our real self.
So any priceless things fall through he cracks of our lives if we don’t
keep a journal. The most priceless things are the thoughts we have about
the things we experience. Sometimes I am amazed at what I said about
some of the challenges I have faced.
When I say “amazed” I do not mean that I was positively impressed in all
situations. Sometimes I am amazed at how much some experiences took out
of me or how poorly I dealt with the issues I faced. Sometimes I am
amazed at how well I dealt with things at that stage of my life. In
both cases, I get insights into my real self, which is the main reason I
keep a journal in the first place.
But it is not the only reason. Life is not just about saving our soul.
Part of the reason for journaling is to enjoy our journey -- the people
we journey with and the places we go. Unless we really taste, smell,
see, touch and hear those things, we are missing so much.
Just last week on mother’s birthday I saw some pictures of mother and
dad that were made right before they were married. The funky hats they
wore that were popular at that time really amused me. But I also saw how
young, beautiful and vibrant they were at that time. I even noticed how
much some of their grandchildren favored them before they ever had a
single child. My brother’s son has three triplets that favor Dad so much
that I could not help smiling. How beautiful life gets the longer we
live it!
I am telling you, you will miss these wonderful experiences if you don’t
keep a journal. And it is really such a tragic loss of the pieces of
your life.
Anything we can do to find our true self is worth our time.
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