Journal With Impact: Family

Workshop: Six Conversations for Writing Creative Journals

“The beautiful thing about memories is that they are yours; whether they are good, bad, or indifferent. They belong to you, and no matter where you are now.”

                                                                                                                                Unknown

Family Journals

Journaling about family, or with family, can help cement memories as well as build new bridges. And family may, or may not, or both, be only biological, but can also be the people who have become your chosen family over the years, regardless of geographic distance.

The interactions of past and present can impact our daily choices emotionally in ways we sometimes don’t recognize at first, because they are automatic signals that often we have forgotten, or are too busy to investigate. Taking time to journal family matters helps us find threads both for ourselves personally now, or as preparation for family memoirs, and as a basis to develop fictional characters for writers.

Inheritance goes far beyond any physical and financial categories. It involves personalities, talents, humor, values, faith, commitments, and perceptions.

There are three main areas in which family journaling is most effective: Family history, family vacations, and family communications. All three have parts which enable us to see what is strong in communication and connection, and, or, what is missing and perhaps why. Once again the exercises for each category overlap and can be interspersed.

Action Steps:

1. What inheritance from your family have you most cherished?

2. What inheritance have you most been plagued, or challenged to change?

Share: Which of these memories surprised you?

Read deep, marcy