r/Journaling • u/TillHealthy2905 • 1d ago
Prompts Writing to Future readers
If you had a journal meant specifically for writing to a future reader, aka your son/daughter whose mom you haven't met just yet, what would you write to them?
Do any of you ever think of what to write to your kids, or is it a strange thing?
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u/StormyStenafie 1d ago
I read something recently that really stuck with me. The idea that when you are old or older you can read through your entire life by revisiting your journals. I think that's such a beautiful idea. I've kept a journal for almost 34 years, so I have a lot, I mean a lot of journals saved. My journals don't have a whole lot of happy things in them if I'm completely honest with myself. But now that I'm thinking in the perspective of an older me reading my journals, I do want to include more playful language more fun experiences. It might just completely change how I journal.
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u/Icy_Entertainer_3275 1d ago
Not strange but that wouldn’t be my main journal. People write and email letters to their children.
I like it better when I write to my inner child instead 😊
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u/Azula_lioness 1d ago
I do this.
As a girl in an heavy cultured/religious world. I have a lot to say to my legacy. How I break the toxic cirkel, how society have expectations for a girl (we are seen as no more than a wife/mom) and many more topics. I try to write for both genders. I do not have kids yet. I do have a main journal (I do not mind if they read it).
Al so I am a very closed off person no emotions always strategic. I just know this will help the people I love the most understand me better😳
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u/th_costel 1d ago
I keep a journal for my kids that I began when the youngest was born. It functions more as a family diary. I have a separate journal for my non-public reflections.
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u/GaneshaLovesMe 17h ago
Every once in a while I find myself writing a phrase like “and if you’ve been reading along you know that I hate potatoes!”
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1d ago edited 13h ago
[deleted]
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u/TillHealthy2905 1d ago
Oh yeaaaa, I get what u mean. worse in my case cause I tend to write about how I'm just waiting for death (even tho I don't actively seek to die)
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u/hmmwrites 1d ago
I'm a mom. I create scrapbooks for my family's memories. I hope my son values them and looks back at his childhood years with smiles and laughter, remember the stories I've saved in there. But my journaling is just for me. I've asked my husband and son not to read my journals without permission, and I would be very hurt if either did so against my wishes. But once I've passed, sure, my kid can read through and see if he gains any insight into who I was when he was a kid. Heck, he can donate it to some preservation society for the public to read, once I'm dead. But I don't write my journals *to* him... I journal for me.
I don't think it's a weird thing to do at all, but it's not *my* thing, at the very least.
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u/Shot-Horse2515 9h ago
i like the idea of writing an anonymous journal and donating it to a thrift store or leaving somewhere for someone to find. just write it like a diary
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u/Gatita_Gordita 1d ago
Personally, I wouldn't. I tend to censor myself when I write for others.
However, when/if you have a kid, keeping a journal for them to kind of chronicle their growing up from your perspective sounds like a wonderful thing to do. :)