I started keeping a personal journal recently. I've never taken the time to do so in the past. Several great men througout history kept journals, and their writings still influence the present as they are used to describe and frame the past. I would be interested to hear your thoughts about journal writing, and the reasons why you enjoy it or consider it valuable enough to occupy your time.

As a writer of fiction, I find journal writing to be a good way to keep in the habit of putting thoughts to paper. It also helps to sharpen your skills of observation, as you place the details of your experiences down.

I turn 30 next month and have kept a journal since I was a 10 or 11 years old. I recall being inspired early on to record what went on in my life and what I was thinking. My dad, who's over 70, has written in a daily calendar for as long as he has been able to write. He still has all these little date books and periodically has them out at New Year's to review and read selections aloud. That was pretty inspiring now that I think of it. If I stood to inherit anything, I would desire my dad's journals.

More than a journal, my daily writings are pretty much one life-long letter to God. I even begin each entry with "Dear God" and end with a short prayer. It is a wonderfully powerful and cleansing way to end the day, putting things in perspective down on paper. I must confess that I always wrote with the notion that perhaps someday someone might read my entries on purpose (or by accident). I have heard of people who have burned their journals so that this would not happen. They believed this would allow them to write with freedom and expression. I wouldn't go that far. They have always been very personal, but I share entries with my wife from time to time.

Writing in a journal has also given me a keen memory. Every so often a particular day of the year will strike my memory as having been significant in my past. I can usually recall without difficulty the details of the event, having chronicled them in my journal years ago and imbedded them in long-term awareness.

Good topic. Looking forward to what others' experiences have been with journals.

I've been keeping a journal off and on for years. It allows me to dump ideas on paper for later use and meditation. There have been times when I've gone back and read the things I'd previously written and I can find myself transported by my words to another time and I experience those emotions and thoughts all over again. Since the words are personal (obviously, since I wrote them) it's a way to capture my mindset on paper for all time.

I write for my own personal gratification, but there has been one other person that I've allowed to read my entries. A few weeks before I was married, I allowed my wife (then-fiancee) to read my journal and it allowed her to have an even better understanding of who I was and how I thought. I found that it was a great way for her to see "me" without any subterfuge or acting. I write for me, but maybe one day it can be a benefit to others. Can you think of a better way to allow your teenage children to see that you really did experience the same things they are experiencing than letting them read what you wrote?

I'm a writer too- well, a very new writer, and I've always had a hard time keeping a journal, especially now with the time restraints of college papers. But I've always found that some of my best works spring from thoughts I've written into my journal. I can store ideas that I want to remember. I can talk freely about how I think or feel on different topics without worrying about offending anyone. A journal is a place where you can truly be you.

For my last birthday, I received an amazing book about journals. It's called "Leaving a Trace: On Keeping a Journal" by Alexandra Johnson. It provides insight on how to get started, how to keep it going, and the point in writing a journal at all. I would highly recommend reading this book, even if you're already do have a journal.