Wednesday, May 6, 2009

A Shared Journal - One Journal, Two Writers

"I've got mail!" There's a blue journal with a ladybug on it, on my pillow tonight!
I have a journal that I share with my daughter. We write entries back and forth to each other, sharing ideas, thoughts, favorite books, and memories I have from when I was her age.
A shared journal is a great way to give individual compliments and attention. Sometimes questions or observations can be made in a journal easier than face to face.

In the shared journal with my other daughter, we doodle and decorate the pages. She loves to draw and express herself through her art. We make plans for trips to the movies or adventures we want to take, we write about favorite characters or artists.

Both journals have been eye-opening. I find that my adult perspective is very different from a 10 year old's-have I forgotten how hard it can be to be a kid, sometimes? I find that my children have profound insights that help me to see the world more clearly.

These journals are a fun forum-not a soapbox or lecture series! I do not correct spelling or grammar. We don't write every day, sometimes it's weeks between entries. My daughters write on one side of their journals, I write on the other.

Sharing a journal can be so rewarding! It is a treasured scrapbook of our relationships as mother and child. And, I hope someday when the questions become more serious, we'll have a healthy relationship where answers and questions can be discussed and answered.

1 comment:

  1. What a wonderful idea! Thank you so much. I have been wanting to do something that brings my children and I closer together individually and I have reluctant writers as well. This seems perfect. Thanks again! I will be visiting your site often now. Post more, please.

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