When using a travel journal that has guideline titles and guidance to ways of thinking is a nice concept. Especially this Mindfulness Travel Journal by Emma Clarke. ‘You are Here’ is a great title. ‘Here?’ Well. The locality surrounding where I actually live is ‘Here’. The problem I found when filling the same journal in a fair number of years ago, when on holiday in Tenerife, was that the holiday was for relaxation. The much needed holiday after stressful nurse work was actually more beach, food, booze and relaxation. Culturally it had no excursions into local surrounding places and interests. So the titles to consider when writing reflections? I had no experienced evidence to make a decent report or reflection on. 

I bought another new one again a few years ago. Covid outbreak got in the way for all of us  Worldwide concerning holidays didn’t it? So it was never used. Now? I’d like to use the journal book format not for holidays, but to weave tales around VeeDub daily experiences when out there in my surrounding countryside and seaside area. Also, the ‘Preparing’ section could concern podcast planning and recommendations. The podcasts themselves and reflections after the events written down. This would make a more substantial portfolio for reflection on failure and successes. It will create great opportunities for reflecting critically on too. There are titles in the ‘Experiences’ section that are ideal for this. However. There are also suggestions in there when it will require having the imagination to very much ‘stretch the meaning’ to ‘fit the theme’. 

Above and below photographs? The home made file can house the new journal within it. Intentions for the file’s future are to record planning on individual singular hand made paper sheets as thoughts arise. This ‘journal’ file, when put together, allowed inclusions that could be a flexible, flowing and, ultimately, a fluid system. Additional and random thoughts for inclusions to be added appropriately when they arise. As stated already. It will be ideal for reflecting and adding new ideas when planning. Experiences (Experiencing section) in themselves are a one off event. Ideal for the tight ‘You are here’ book format. The ‘Reflecting’ section is collective. Not a reflection opportunity for each individual podcast or event. I suppose it will be a work that will be an ever changing ideal. It may also provide inspirations for my own made up future journal type questions? Ones that I can write down for guidance, containment, focus in other different projects, musings or thought meanderings. Create questions to guide limitations to thoughts and answers in the journal entry.

For example: ‘What would I tell people about this particular amazing/awful experience ? Or would I keep it private and to myself?’. Or ‘What are the resulting changes to feelings I got from using this particular blend of essential oil to help settle/raise this particular Illness, Mood or Emotion?’

Writing my blogs tends to be observations and statements. No analyses or consideration answers or advice. I had too much of those latter experiences during my professional health practitioner days. So blogs and journal entries are now simply nice opportunities to write down statements of life as it happens. Reflecting on events? Writing down my own experiences does lend itself to others saying or thinking after reading ‘Hey! I felt that way too. I had that experience. I never thought about it like that. That’s a great attitude or not a good attitude is it?’

Learning curves. Always learning curves. Fun though.

Please tap on individual photographs to enlarge.