Write it down

I watched Bridget Jones' Diary last night. It got me thinking about journaling. I wonder if it started a trend when it first came out, as a book and a movie. Lots of young women go and watch this movie or read this book about someone they can truly relate to and think, I'm going to start a journal! I bet book and stationary stores were quite pleased.
Anyway, I've been journaling since I was a pre-teen, and it was my Mom who inspired me. Seeing all her journals lined neatly on a bookshelf made me want to have that someday. I wrote mostly about boys in those early days, and probably well in to high school too.
There were many years when I didn't journal, it's always been an up and down thing for me. One time I tried keeping a journal on the computer, I lost interest even more quickly though. There is something about the act of writing it down, your handwriting, your hands moving quickly enough to keep up with your thoughts. There's something about having it bound in a small leather bound lined pages item.
Journaling for me has always been something attractive an special. I still go through chunks of time where I don't write anything down, but I know I always feel better when I do. A few months ago I committed to carrying my journal with me everyday and wrote on the train most mornings and evenings when it wasn't too crowded. It is so fun now to look back and read about the people I saw and how I was feeling each day. I briefly thought how interesting it would be to write for a year about riding the subway, but it became hard to feel comfortable writing when there were so many people watching.
Journals are a private thing, not something you'd want to share with anyone, especially not the weird man standing over you with his crotch in your face.
Anyway, watching the movie reminded me how much I enjoy journaling and how therapeutic it can be. In fact, I think I'll go spend some time with it, right now.