Task 2a: Reflective Journal

I have never written a journal before and I was reluctant to start, mainly because I struggle with written text.  Not that I can’t write, just that I don’t like to. I am a talker, I like to talk about my day and I prefer to act it out. 

So I started with the basics. I decided to use the lap top rather than a paper journal and I simply listed the events of the day, no reflection, no emotions, just facts.  A couple of days in I started to do some research.  I started with the definition of a journal and found there is a difference between a diary and a journal:

·         A diary is a report of what happened during the day. It’s a bit like a newspaper about you.

·         A journal is about examining your life. Journals lead to insight, growth, and sometimes, achieving a goal.

http://quinncreative.wordpress.com/2007/08/26/journal-diary-whats-the-difference

http://42explore.com/journl.htm

I wanted to try different ways of a approaching the journal to see if another way felt more comfortable to me.  I have started by moving from the computer to writing the journal by hand.  Using a computer is a bit of a chore, it is a big thing, needs charging, is not instantly accessible (needs booting up) and it feels like work. I found having a book made writing it up easier because I can have it with me at all times, so instantly accessible if I want to make notes there and then.   I am not doing much performing at the moment so my journal seems quite repetitive with little reflection.

I have been thinking about the other ways we have been recommended to try:

·         Write a poem - not a skill I have.

·         Sketching – something I would love to do but my skill level is stick men only.

·         Video – I looked at Marks blog and his video diary seemed a good idea, perhaps something I will try later

·         Photo – I like photography so this is one I defiantly want to try to use and incorporate in my journal.

While I continued to research and look at the extended reading list I found a few things that started to help.  I like quite a few things Ron Klug has said. They make sense to me and this quote is something I believe in and have used in a few situations, especially when I started my journal:

Ron Klug (2002: 34) talks about a college professor who gave the following salient advice to a student: 'Go through the motions, and you'll get the emotions'.

http://www.infed.org/research/keeping_a_journal.htm

Although I tend to say ‘Fake it, till you make it!’

I am starting to find journal writing easier as time goes by and since I have moved from typing to writing it by hand I feel it is slowly moving from a diary to a journal.  Hopefully it will evolve even more and be something I enjoy and find useful.  I will keep you posted.