Why read old journal entries?
History is important, so read yours
Why read old journals?
My morning routine includes reading my journal entries from years past on the same date. The practice helps me identify trends and remember the details of certain events. Journaling is a powerful tool for your history.
Journaling can be creative. It can free you.
My experience with journaling shows that it clears the deck, so to speak, and allows a quieter entry into yoga and meditation practice. There is another side that can be experienced from time to time.
While overwhelmingly positive - journaling or reading old entries can be a negative reminder of how many things you didn’t act on. The journal remembers situations that just got the best of you. Times of abuse and stress that you have yet to change. Patterns that keep going. Sure, you think you are on top of things. You think you are making progress and good changes. But your journal reminds you that this problem or that situation is still there.
Unchanged.
This is not to admonish in any way. The journal points out that you keep plugging along. You keep going. There is “just another brick in the wall,” as Roger Waters of Pink Floyd reminds us, and you defend yourself with some insulation techniques that dampen the impact of these things.
One must put up barriers to keep oneself intact. -Niel Pert, Rush (Limelight)
The journal reminds you of the unresolved issues, the promises to yourself unkept. When will you listen and take action on those reminders?
The journal is a source of more than reminders. Your journal should also remind you that, no matter the failure or recurring theme, no matter illness, anxiety, and fear, you are still here. You have survived the situations you wrote about. You are here to tell the tale of today.
You have overcome and endured. And there will be more to write about tomorrow.