You spent a week journaling and adding bits. Did you enjoy the week's practice? Did you have any special insights? Did you feel like the pages had any value? Did you go into your daily practice wanting something special out of it? Or did you work more intuitively? I would love to know?
One of the things I found with the "brain dump" method of journaling is that the pages and pages of generated journaling often aren't very satisfying if you want something pretty, interesting, funky?
This week we will change the practice up just a bit in order for you to continue the "brain dump" practice but to give more flexibility to make the page into something more interesting.
What you will need is a lighter colored pen. I actually picked up a small set of pens at my local drug store that had orange, pink, light blue and purple ball point pens for a few bucks. {( wouldn't use the purple color for this week's exercises, it's a bit too dark but any of the others will work well). You could use Flair markers, Gel pens, even Crayola markers as long as you pick a lighter shade... one you can read but not too dark. You want the pen after it covers the page to shade the page but not be so pronounced that it can be easily read. You will also need a dark pen with a medium point. It can be any type of pen you like to write with or to do lettering. You will also need a magazine or a stack of images/photos/scrapbook paper/.... your choice, and glue and/or tape (or anything that will affix any images you would like to add onto the page). Any other art supplies you might feel like using.
Your mission is to do a brain dump, this time on both side of your page, each morning. Again the size of the page doesn't matter, just remember to journal on both front and back. Use your light-colored pen. Keep a scrap sheet of paper handy so if you journaled about something you wish to keep a record of or explore further you can jot it down after (and only after) your brain dump is all done.
So, you have completed your journaling. The next step is to decorate the page. You can cover it... or not. Put down some interesting magazine pictures, photos, paper, bits and bobs... anything in any way that pleases you. Decorate both sides of the paper. The journaled paper is your background. Use it as the first layer of whatever you want to create. Maybe you just want to put down some pictures that strike your fancy. GREAT! Maybe you want to doodle a bit! TERRIFIC! Maybe you want to do both! DO IT! Whatever you want... if you have paints and want to paint. DO THAT! But that isn't necessary. I think you will find the less different types of supplies you have a choice of, the easier getting something down will be. BUT IT'S YOUR CALL ALL THE WAY!
Keep in mind what you may have noted on your scrap paper. Was it a few words? A few ideas? A few important decision, discoveries, or conclusions? Was it an important paragraph? I want you to use your dark black pen to document these notes on your page... Maybe you want to doodle them, write them in fancy lettering, or just write them again, over the top of the collaged material or the light written background in a way that you can see them.
Fill the page, front and back, until you are satisfied... or until you don't know what else to do. YOU ARE DONE!
Continue this for the week. It is my hope as you are adding your pictures, papers, ephemera, photos... that you add things that make you happy. What is nice about this week's practice is that you are doing triple duty. You are clearing you brain, getting it down on paper, (then when you are done) making quick notes of anything of particular value that you wrote. Then you get to use your creativity to make the page into something that you enjoy... Turn the blob of words into a page filled with things that make you grin! Journaler satisfaction is key!! We have been journaling and adding bits but the focus hasn't been specifically to create happiness on the page. The practice itself was what was important. Now we are bringing in the fun, the creativity, the joy of pleasing yourself on the page but keeping one of the most powerful of journaling practices, the "Morning Page" style of brain spill.
I hope you really have fun this week! At the end of the week I want you to be able to flip through you pages and SMILE. I want you to feel like there is something to journaling!
Please leave me a comment about how this week's exercise went! I would love, love, love to hear how it is going! Happy Journaling and I will see you next week!
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