(photo via mollyandrex.com)
today i taught the young women about the importance of keeping a record which for me was the best, because i have been obsessed with keeping a journal since a young age. there is box full of old journals of mine taped up in the loft in the shed at my parents house (mostly because i have absolutely zero desire to look at any of them ever again haha) because i know one day i, or another member of my family will want them.
we started off by having each of the girls take some paper and write down everything they could remember about their baptism day, which to be honest wasn't a whole lot. the point of the excercise though is to make them realise that by writing it down, they would be able to go back and read it at a later time and remember all their thoughts and feelings about it.
"throughout our lives we have feelings and experiences that can keep our testimonies strong and give us courage in difficult times. but in order to remember them, we need to record them. otherwise, these feelings will fade in our memories, and we may eventually forget them completely. a journal is a place to record experiences, thoughts, feelings, and events as they occur in our lives."
ancient and modern prophets have counseled us to keep journals. i mean scriptures are literally the journals of ancient prophets! enoch explained the importance of recording important events in moses 6:45-46: and death hath come upon our fathers; nevertheless we know them... "for a book of remembrance we have written among us, according to the pattern given by the finger of God; and it is given in our own language." alma also counseled his son in alma 37:8 that "records enlarge the memory."
in 3 nephi 23:6-13 the saviour was very concerned that the nephites had not recorded some of the prophecies they had received. he expected the people to keep accurate and complete records.
spencer w kimball said: "every person should keep a journal and every person can keep a journal. it should be an enlightening one and should bring great blessings and happiness to the families. if there is anyone here who isn’t doing so, will you repent today and change—change your life? those who keep a personal journal are more likely to keep the lord in remembrance in their daily lives."
what kinds of things should we include in our journals?
-important events, impressions and personal feelings
-personal counsel, promised, and blessings received and the circumstances surrounding them
-deaths, births, marriages, baptisms and endowments
-personal triumphs, failures, and struggles and how they are met
-current local, national, and world events that impress you or influence your life
-simple occurrences in daily life
journals are a very personal thing so it's up to us exactly how we would like to keep it (for example this is mine right here - all online!) but suggestions from others who are experienced are always helpful.
how to ensure our journals are well kept:
-date every entry. the day of the week and even the time can be helpful
-number the pages
-set aside time to write (maybe a sunday afternoon after church?)
-keep your journal easily accessible, take extra pages on trips or to special church meetings
-always use first and last names when writing about individuals
being creative ensures our journal is special to us. a young woman explained her method of making her journal interesting: “i named my journal Lucy. it’s like my best friend. it’s kind of hard to talk to a page, but now i talk to my best friend lucy and tell her my feelings.” (this is from great article about journals in the new era you can find here)
*thirteen year old anne frank , with her parents, sister and four other people, went into hiding in the sealed off back rooms of an amsterdam office building in 1942, when the nazi invaders intensified their persecution of the jews. for two years they remained safe. in august 1944 they were betrayed. anne died in the ghastly concentration camp at belsen. all the others perished too, with the exception of her father. anne's astonishingly intimate diary was found by accident. wit a touch of genius it records the strains of her unusual life, the problems of her unfolding womanhood, her falling in love and her unswerving faith in her religion. and it reveals the shining nobility of her spirit.
*anne frank's diary became a worldwide bestseller, published after her death when it was found in the rooms that had hidden her family. she wrote to her friend "kitty" in her diary sharing her thoughts, feelings and fears. she wrote, "i hope i shall be able to confide in you completely, as i have never been able to do in anyone before, and i hope that you will be a great support and a comfort to me."
"i want to go on living after my death. and therefore i am grateful to god for giving me this gift... of expressing all that is in me."
our journals can be interesting and lasting
clarissa young, one of brigham youngs daughters, kept a very detailed journal during the years she lived in the beehive house in salt lake city utah. the beehive house was the name given to brigham youngs home. clarissa not only wrote a detailed description of each room in the house, but included things such as the colours of the walls, the furnishings used and what things were set on the mantle from year to year. she even included an actual piece of the drapery fabric used in the "long hall", the room where all the formal entertaining was done. in 1954, when the church began restoration of the one hundred year old beehive house, clarissa's journal was invaluable. even the drapery sample she had kept was sent to a drapery company and new drapes were woven to look exactly like the original ones.
the journals we keep can be made more interesting by adding such things as drawings, quotations or poetry that will help tell our stories. in addition to a journal, many people also keep a scrapbook in which they preserve newspaper clippings, church bulletins, comic strips, dance programs, clothing samples and other items that have meaning to them.
so many things can be a journal, for example, you're reading my journal right now!! this blog is the way i keep a record of my life and everything in it!! the australian singer/songwriter missy higgins was known to say, "i feel quite embarrassed sometimes when people are listening to my music, it's as though they are reading my diary."
to be valuable a journal should also be lasting. an organ teacher gave a student some wise counsel the day she bought a new music book to her lesson. after commenting on its cost he explained, "music is not only expensive, but it's worth to you will grow as you study it and it becomes a part of you. if you will provide a protective cover or folder for your music, it will last a lifetime. but if you bring it every week to your lesson without one, your music will soon become ragged, worn and worthless." can you imagine how that relates to our journals? we need to ensure they are kept safe and protected. there is a reason the scriptures were written on metal plates!
careful planning now can make a journal a treasure for many generations. regular thoughtful attention can make it a book of tremendous worth. and when we keep a record of our lives, we can have a peaceful feeling that comes from obeying the lord's commandments.
*taken from the diary of anne frank.
