Journals

One of my first vivid memories with my mother is Sunday afternoons, we would sit on her bed while we wrote in my journal together. She was following the words of the prophet. Spencer W. Kimball was the leader of our church during my childhood, and he had a passion for journal writing.

I have just looked up his talk from 1980 and want to record some of his words here.

"Your journal will tell of problems as old as the world, and how you dealt with them....What could you do better for your children and your children's children than to record the story of your life, your triumphs over adversity, your recovery after a fall, your progress when it all seemed black, your rejoicing when you had finally achieved?"

"Your story should be written now while it is fresh and while the true details are available....The truth should be told but we should not emphasize the negative."

"Begin today and write in it your comings and your goings, your deeper thoughts, your achievements, and your failures, your associations and your triumphants, your impressions and your testimonies. This is what the Lord has commanded and those who keep a personal journal are more likely to keep the Lord in remembrance in their daily lives."

This principle that I learned in my youth has stayed close to my heart.