I've kept a personal journal for more than half a century, 57 years would be about right. I'm 72 now; I was 15 when my journal writing began. My journals are not diaries. I don't make a daily entries noting specific day's activities. Journals, for me, are places to write down the experience I'm in, …
I’ve kept a personal journal for more than half a century, 57 years would be about right. I’m 72 now; I was 15 when my journal writing began. My journals are not diaries. I don’t make a daily entries noting specific day’s activities.
Journals, for me, are places to write down the experience I’m in, the elements of my life, family history, reading, and yes, daydreaming. And, for the most part, I write my journals in the first person, just like I’m doing here.
Some years ago, the idea of writing in the third person when I wrote in my journal, from time to time, stepped into the open.
The experience of writing in the third person introduced me to a clarity I’d not know before, for, when you think about it, for a very simple reason. When I write in the first-person, I am speaking as me. When I write in the third person, I am speaking as an observer of me.
Instead of saying, “I’m so tired right now, I don’t know how much writing I’ll get done,” I’d say, “Sitting on the couch that morning his half-closed eyes and untouched coffee let you know the poor man was pooped.”
When I write in the third person, I notice things about me and the world around me that I would not notice were I writing in the first person.
Each of us deserves as much clarity as we can muster when it comes to understanding and managing our lives.
