YES now this is what I feed myself: sleep in the nest of my feather bed; buttered cream of wheat with goat’s milk and cardamom beethoven quartets, shimmering jazz renata tebaldi’s legs wrapped around verdi. poems that bloom like roadside daisies jane hirshfield, seamus heaney basho. rilke white chrysanthemums in a blue vase my fingers ... Read More >>
By Juneous Pettijohn, IAJW Member From the pages of his journal... 10/20/ 2018 Journal Entry If I can describe my life with one word, it will be COURAGE. I chose this word because my life has been centered around this word. I describe my life as "Courage in Three Acts." Act 1: Running away from ... Read More >>
WHY JOIN A JOURNAL GROUP? Our “Write to Heal” group has eight members ranging in age from late 50s to late 70s. Most have met weekly for almost eight years. Currently, all are women, but we have had men from time to time. People joined as seasoned journalers or new explorers of using therapeutic writing ... Read More >>
This week offers us Valentine's Day on February 14th, a beautiful time to pause and reflect on love. There are so many ways to give and receive love in this life. As the saying goes..."Love makes the world go round." Love comes in many forms...romantic love, the love between a parent and a child, big ... Read More >>
The Necessity of Writing (from Writing as a Way of Healing by Louise DeSalvo)… “Many people I know who want to write but don’t (my husband, Ernie, for example) or who want to write more than they have but say they can’t find the time (my friend Marla) have told me that taking the time ... Read More >>
People often have many great questions about journal writing - what to write about, how to get started, how to keep going, and so forth. The IAJW Ask Our Coach feature - is here to answer your questions. Feel welcome join the conversation, offer your own responses to the question in our comments below, or ... Read More >>
Meet Jennifer Brooker, IAJW Member from New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada Why did you join the IAJW? I joined IAJW to be part of the journal writing community, to learn more about what others are doing with their journal writing. Our paths can be so diverse. For me, being part of community, hearing / reading ... Read More >>
Wow, another year flowing by like the tidal waters being called back out to the ocean. My office faces out to Fulford Harbour, on Salt Spring Island, BC, Canada. The constant ebb and flow of the tide reminds me that things are always shifting and changing. I love this time of year to harvest the ... Read More >>
One of my favourite parts about the IAJW is our Journal Council - a group of experts, authors and change makers who make a difference with their respective work in the journaling, creative and expressive writing fields and more! They also make a difference in our IAJW community by sharing their writing tips and wisdom, ... Read More >>
One of the things I value most about my journal writing practice is that it helps me to cultivate hope and optimism and gratitude in a world that is filled with VUCA. VUCA is an acronym—first used in 1987—to describe or to reflect on the volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity of general conditions and situations. ... Read More >>