Why Write? Anchor Your Memories 2

Reason to Write #2: Anchor Your Memories

MEMORIES HAVE A WAY of floating away and out of sight as we go on with our lives. Have you ever wished you could go back in time in order to know what really happened on a particular day?  You can no longer remember whether Johnny lost his tooth before or after his 5th birthday. And you can’t remember exactly where you hiked on that glorious summer day three years ago. But your recollection seems to be as vague and hazy as a shadow.

What if you had written about those experiences? Recording the events of your life on paper is similar to taking snapshots and storing them in a photo album. Later, you can look at your album and enjoy the memories the photographs bring back to you. You can even combine the strengths of photography and art with your journal writing to create visual journal entries.

The details of your days may seem so commonplace, you’ll sometimes feel that they aren’t worth writing about. Or you might go through a difficult time of loss, divorce, depression, or illness and want to avoid writing about it. But when you  record  the events of your life, the circumstances around them, and how you felt while they were happening, you’ll be happy you did. These seemingly unimportant or difficult parts of your life become the stories you’ll return to for comfort and inspiration. They become the stories that you’ll tell to your children and grandchildren. They are the stories of universal importance because they speak of what it is to be human, to hurt, to love, and to surmount and survive obstacles.

Write to anchor your memories. Bring them back to earth where you can find them when you want.