I kept a journal all through my single 30s, until Mr. singular moved in with me in the 80s. Because there were things in there that would hurt him, I shredded it (by hand!) before he moved in, and now I really regret it. I did some of my best writing, trying to analyze my life during that tumultuous time, and I really regret not being able to revisit those thoughts. If you’re young and keeping a journal, find a way to keep it until you’re old. You won’t regret it.
I’ve kept a daily journal every day since the day I turned eight. I would never think of leaving the house without writing up yesterday.
And I still have them, and I am very proud of doing it.
What I wonder is what becomes of them. Are there archives that will take journals?
Yes. Many years. I have skertch books and a dream journal as well.
My general/personal is not quite daily but I update it at least a few times a week. It isn’t quite a diary so much as a general view from my eyes.
I also keep a second journal of details from work but more in case I need it in the future legally. What I was assigned, different details, names and interactions. The wife has been in legal basically our whole lives and there have been a couple times in our past when it came in handy. That one is daily; at least every day I clock in.
All archives have collections policies and mission statements that define what they will take. Many would be interested in such things.
As an aside, years ago I tracked down the last remaining daughter of an important labour/socialist activist and writer. She was in her 80s, and we had many talks about her life and her father. At one point she said her father kept a journal every single day of his life. When I regained consciousness, I asked if she knew where they were. Her sister had kept them all, and when she died, the landlord threw them all out, save for one. She brought it out for me, and it basically ended with, “leaving this one horse town, heading to the city, interested in this thing called socialism…”
I do and they are full of what is basically drivel. My GF and my daughter have both promised me that they will burn them when I go on to glory.
My late FIL kept a daily journal; dull. Weather, what odd side jobs he did if any, some family stuff like “went to dinner with Lou and Maura” sometimes. They are all (50+) in the attic somewhere and we have plans to toss them some day. The exception is the last one. He had written his usual two or three lines the day before he passed and Muvver (my now also late MIL) wrote a very touching little note the day he died. Not long but full of a love they shared for ages. The OW having been an only child the last 25 years or so and us not having kids its probably silly to keep. But the cousins who get to clean house when we’re gone know the names and faces and – maybe they’ll learn something.
When I was young and interesting to myself I was quite the journal-keeper. Still have those in a box in the attic although they are totally embarrassing. I went through several decades of very random entries sometimes years apart, but when I moved across the continent, my urge to record revived. Every day when I wake up (before dawn, I’m a morning person) I feed the dogs, make a cup of tea, and sit down with my journal. I note down the day, date, time, temperature and weather before I recap the preceding day, often with little sketches and many rambling asides. Much more external than I used to be (‘husband got the boiler working finally’, ‘rode eight miles mostly trotting, horse flies only moderate near the beaver pond’) yet the practice gives me a lot of satisfaction, kind of centers me before my day begins.
I sincerely doubt they will be of the slightest interest to posterity, that isn’t why I do it.
I’ve kept a gardening journal since the mid-90s. Invaluable for seeing what I’ve grown in the past and how well it did. I also keep track of weather (the date of the first frost in fall has been gradually coming later and later, which might correlate with climate change). Life events and world happenings occasionally sneak in too.
I have been in the habit of noting daily weather data (including location) since I was 20 and started pretending I was an Earth Goddess. A couple of years ago, I contacted a state university and asked if anyone wanted that weather data. The answer was a solid YES!
If your FIL’s weather report was just “rained today”, it probably wouldn’t be much value. If he has daily temp and humidity reports, they could be very appreciated.
The reason I started doing this was because someone I cared for gave me a beautiful daily journal, along with fancy pens, and I had to do SOMETHING with it.
I didn’t want to actually waste the lovely paper and ink on my emotional drivel because I’d have to rip the page out and burn it a few days later, which would ruin the look of the beautiful journal.
I was about nineteen when I started my journal which is still going today. I’d pay almost anything to send a message to myself to start it earlier. At least going back to sixteen, but really going back to about twelve. While I was at it I’d tell myself to take more photos, like everyone else.
I keep a very informal one. It is as likely to have my Scrabble scores as any profound thoughts. I go through a booklet every ninety days of so. I am up to volume thirty-something. Still I make an entry every day.
I tried the handwritten diary thing when I was a kid. Somebody would gift me a diary, and I’d do maybe a month of dreck and give up.
I do have an online journal that I need to start working on. I’ve had a hiatus or three, but I try to return to it.
I wanted to preserve family stories for my kids…and now my grandkids.
Many parts are hilarious…!
~VOW
Adding to above…
I just checked, and my journal dates back to December, 2004!
Sometimes I amaze myself!
~VOW
Those that have kept daily journals for a long time – that’s impressive. I can’t imagine myself maintaining a constant task like that over time.
For myself, I began keeping a sort of journal in 2006 when I first began viewing retirement as a reality instead of something impossibly far in the future. I added to it as either my finances or desires changed. I’ve continued it post-retirement when anything notable happens. I find I like writing down everything from trips, to medical issues.
The most surprising thing is how much my wants changed over a dozen years.
I do, but it is the most spartan of journals. Each day gets just one line in my landscape-orientation Word document. Some uneventful days get nothing.
A sample entry may look like this:
04/16/2019 - Off. Changed driver side headlight. Fixed bathroom faucet drip. Treadmill 1/2 hour. Renewed Nat Geo subscription, $19. Trivia, second place.
Been doing it for a little over 2 years now. It’s kinda cool to see what mundane (or not) day I had exactly one or two years ago today.
Nope. Tried to, years ago, but I don’t have the self-discipline to keep up with one, or enough interest in any potential benefits to go to the trouble of training myself.
I’ve tried a few times over the years but failed every time. Also, it is so cringeworthy to go back and read what I wrote as a teenager.
If you ever want to have a laugh, watch The Mortified Guide on Netflix. People on stage reading their diaries from their teenage years. Mortified is putting it lightly!
In 1979 I inherited, along with five others, an old house that only I lived in. I started a journal of the renovations and repairs for reimbursement purposes. Lot’s of good information about the place, but really boring to read like a book.
By 1992 I found some vacant property and started site development for a future abode. I started another journal for that effort. It’s not a diary, nor even filled out with regularity. But I’m up to volume eight, 356 pages. Like the earlier journal, it has excruciating detail and is really boring to read like a book. Fortunately, I’ve been making a detailed index all along. So it’s more reference work that readable book.
It’s been a lot of work but has also saved my butt many times. Whomever takes over after I’m gone is going to appreciate my effort.