by Nathan Ohren
I’m excited to be participating in Mari’s 27 Days to Peace of Mind and Body journaling challenge this month! If you’ve never done it, you’ve really missed a mind-body retreat that works into your busy schedule in convenient 15-minute segments! The companion workbook is a journey inward; packed with enough prompts and quotes each day so there’s something for everyone.
I’ll never forget last year’s “27 Days to Peace of Mind & Body” event. I bought the vibrant purple workbook, and arrived at the page on Day One with glowing anticipation. In week one, I travelled back in time to my childhood, strengthened my mind-body connection, explored poetry and song lyrics, faced my worst fears head-on, and examined how my self-talk sabotages me. By week two, I was a brand new person (but I was exhausted)! I felt somehow I must have done the whole 27-Day workshop in the first seven days!
(Please don’t tell Mari this, but I remember skipping a couple days in week two, just to catch my breath! Shhhh….)
The best thing about Mari’s journal-writing spree is how she weaves the overarching theme of experiencing peace with your entire life throughout the 27 days; and yet, each of the daily writing prompts is so unique and personal, touching on every aspect; from food, career, relationships, self-esteem, and yes, of course, MUSIC. There’s no time for getting bored in this journaling challenge. And just in case you need a little extra support, there’s the private bulletin board in Facebook, just for participants. There’s a certain magic that happens when those who are on a similar journey inward can share a community space. It turns each private spark of an “aha” moment into a joy for everyone.
This year, I’m looking forward to the brilliantly-worded questions that get my creative engines running, and facilitate the real work of journaling. But I’m doing it a little differently this year. In fact, it feels a little like I’m learning to journal all over again. You see, I’ve been a hand-writer all my life, with stacks of banker’s boxes lining the walls of my garage, filled with my hand-written journals. I’ve decided it’s time to investigate the option of digital journaling. This year, I’m going to respond to each of Mari’s 27 daily prompts into my computer.
In the past, I’ve been skeptical that typing my thoughts and feelings could possibly allow me to dig quite as deep inside myself, or would allow me all the therapeutic advantages of handwriting. For example: the need to squiggle or doodle to express my whimsy, or to press down firmly on the page to express the intensity of my anger. And besides, there is something very tangible, I can’t put my “finger” on it (that’s punny!) but using pen and paper just seem to put me in closer contact with the words I’m choosing.
But I’ve heard a great many compelling arguments for digital journaling, and I’ve been curious for a while. The pragmatist in me knows that typing my journal entries will make them easier to store and preserve over time, just like one of my very first guests on JournalTalk reminded me. So with an open mind, I’m going to go digital in preparation for the big 30-Day Digital Journaling Challenge coming up next month.
If you have an open mind, and curious to give the electronic version of journal therapy a try, please join me. Mari L. McCarthy is one of our expert sponsors, and her prompts will be featured in at least 3 of the 30 days. We will have quotes, poetry and prompts each day in October, along with giveaway prizes each day. Plus, the daily email newsletter will have tips for taking advantage of the digital aspects of journaling. This is an interesting experiment to be part of, and some 300+ people all over the world are already registered!
I expect everyone who does the 30-Day Digital Journaling Challenge will come away with the same conclusion that Mari and I have shared in our JournalTalk podcast on this subject: The only “write” way to journal is your way!
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Nathan Ohren is host of JournalTalk, a weekly podcast featuring tips and inspiration on journal-writing. Keeping a personal journal for over 29 years, and a Certified Instructor at the Center for Journal Therapy, Nathan enjoys facilitating writing groups for creativity, self-empowerment and effective life management. Nathan is the founder of Write4Life, a resource for “living with passion, clarity, and purpose through journaling.”
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