The Journey

It all began in High School when I fell in love with notebooks, colorful pencils, watercolor and journaling. It is definitely one of the most beautiful ways of keeping memories at hand other than taking pictures and posting on Instagram for everyone to see. I have a few and more inspiration to continue jotting down my journey whether I am on the go abroad or in-state. Nothing beats the thrill of skimming through a notebook and looking at doodles, bits of notes, scraps of memories--all things of past, but still alive as ever in the moment.

Definitely different from social media, keeping a journal covers the three P's for me: Personal, Private, and Present. As opposed to having an audience, I am free to write and draw whatever I want and show a chosen few the heart of my journey.

I believe I was in tenth grade High School when I received a book The Creative License by Danny Gregory, from my art teacher. The book inspired me to begin--and to strip off the fear of trying something new. The mythology put into "talent," rather than the reality of practice leading to progress is among the many things I learned from reading the book repeatedly. One of my favorite passages in the book is:

"Without art, your soul suffers; you lack a chance to express who you are, to hone your own point of view, to make your life your own. You are less than human, no matter how many super bowl rings you're wearing, When you make something and share it with the world, your voice will be proven wrong again. People won't say, 'Well, that drawing is pathetic. That poem is lame. That note is slightly flat. That diary reveals what a moron the writer was.' If they stop to judge it at all, they'll almost certainly say, 'I wish I did that.' Which will give you the chance to say: 'Well, why don't you?' (Gregory, 153)"

Danny Gregory has become more than an author I came across, he is someone I keep in my thoughts when I need to push myself to my fullest potential. I mean, how does one get their driver's license? Where do you even start? Well, you start practicing and keep on making progress. You already have the Creative License, all you need to do is start.

Throughout my journey over the years, I accumulated a bunch of notebooks with contents that vary from year to year. From small black notebooks, to colorful lined and blank ones--I never feel more alive than filling up a page in some way. My journals on this picture does not even complete everything I have owned, but these are the pocket ones I keep almost daily. What I like about these notebooks are their small and compact nature, but I have moved from these black notebooks to a Midori Traveler Notebook. Which, can I say, is so incredible?! Very beautiful, the brown leather can be sophisticated and casual at the same time. It is a refillable on-the-go magic I am so happy to own and provides more than enough room for my mind's wiring. The advantage of owning a Midori Traveler Notebook is I can create my own notebook fillers. At the moment, I have only made my watercolor filler, but it has worked wonders for me. I especially use it when I go to the beach.

As my previous blog posts gave away, I have traveled to France and Italy in the summer of 2015. During my travels, I was able to purchase a notebook while visiting Cannes for the Cannes Film Festival. The paper's texture was magnificent, thick enough that I can use a fine point fountain pen with just a slight imprint on the other side. Anyway, keeping a traveler's journal is a huge, HUGE recommendation. I found that as I made my way through Rome, especially, I am able to capture the moment (I do not know how to stress this enough). I am truly happy and fortunate to have begun the travel journal, on the (I believe?) third day of my trip.

Here are some of my favorites from my first travel journal:

There was a very busy day in Rome that was most vivid to me. I was tired beyond belief, we visited so many places and stopped to see the Coloseum in the evening. When we arrived at the hotel, I took a hot shower and jotted down everything from the food, ticket stubs, and up to sketching the Coloseum from memory and a partial picture.

Do not be pressured to live an exciting and busy life if you do decide to start a journal. All you need to do is to make whatever you are doing now...an adventure. Make the most of your days, observe more--jot down things such as what you feel like the day's color theme is (that is actually a good journal theme) and write a few sentences as to why. Draw your breakfast or something else, have fun and savor as much as you can.

The best thing about keeping a journal is it can be about anything at all! It can be your to-do list, your dream notebook, your starter sketch-book. Anything! And in the next years, you can stumble upon your journal and look through everything you have experienced, all the progress you have made. So I really, REALLY encourage you to start a journal. It does not have to be a fancy notebook, you can start with something small, blank or lined is up to you. Grab a pencil or a pen, and get out there!

ENJOY YOUR JOURNEY!

Work Cited:

Gregory, Danny. The Creative License: Giving Yourself Permission to Be the Artist You Truly Are. New York: Hyperion, 2006. N. pag. Print.

#journal #writing #travel #notebooks