I was watching a Morning News Talk Show and Laurence Fishburne was a guest talking about how he was going through his old journals during his self quarantine. Personally I have kept journals off and on and like Fishburne stated during his interview when he was reading some of his old entries, you realize how crazy some of your thoughts were.
I have returned to journaling recently, wanting to keep a record of the trials and tribulations I have had to endure during the pandemic. Everyday I make an entry, even if it is just a couple of sentences to keep back into the habit. I want to be able to go back in a couple of years and reflect on this period of history, and it is history, to remember just what transpired and see what hopes and what disappointments I faced and how I coped.
Journaling has a rich history. In fact journals of prominent figures have been essential in constructing periods of history. The journals of folk in wagon trains that moved westward kept detailed experiences of pioneers showing us that the authors were far from the illiterate characters depicted in films but were in fact lettered men and women. That books and newspapers were the mainstream media, much as film and television are to us today. So it is only expected that people were well read during that period of time.
Many contemporary authors journal, such as Neil Gaiman who even keeps one journal
online, well it is actually a blog, but he calls it a journal. Authors use journals not only to reflect and record their life but also to jot down ideas, conversations and incidents that later show up in their stories.
Journaling and creativity go hand in hand. Also it is great therapy. I don't think you can get any more masculine than Ernest Hemmingway who wrote "Write clear and hard about what hurts."
And of course we have the diary of a young lady that brought to light the horrors of being Jewish in Nazi Germany, Anne Frank, "I can shake off everything as I write; my sorrows disappear, my courage is reborn."
Journaling is not only of form of self care, it is also a way to confront our shortcomings, celebrate our successes but also get in touch with our humanity. We are all stories waiting to be read or not to be read but by our own selves if only to remind us that we do have a voice.
So keeping with the long tradition of journaling I designed some journal covers, mostly in a whimsical way. Note: All images are under copyright.
I have also included journals for cat lovers to keep a record of their feline's machinations.
The Library Collection also offers posters of Literary Characters, Lovecraftian Themes and bookplates such as below. These are vinyl stickers that can be used as bookplates inside the cover of your book as well as stickers you can apply to most surfaces.
The Library Collection is something that I took a lot of pride in creating items for the library because of my fondness for books. I hope that you enjoy these offerings and in the future I will create more.
