Handwritten Musings

Tweet

Pin It

I wrote this on Monday, but only got to publish 2 days after.

I just finished writing down all the addresses of our giveaway winners and my right hand hurt like hell. Ever since I got hooked on computers, I barely write anymore, hence the pain. This is bad.

I remember back in high school, I kept a journal. It was no special journal or diary with locks and all. It was just a typical notebook students use in school, but it had all my deepest thoughts and emotions all spelled out on each page. There were a couple of doodles too.

I had journals 'til I was in college. Even after my mother found one of them and learned A LOT of my darkest secrets, it didn't keep me from writing my thoughts on paper. It was my way of keeping my thoughts and emotions in check.

Some people may not understand it, but keeping a journal helped me ward off negative thoughts and feelings I had back when I was still a wild teen. Writing all my feelings away made me feel lighter afterwards for some reason. It's like I'm writing to an actual person, who I sometimes call Diary, and tell her everything I'm thinking and feeling.

Sadly, after over a decade, my journal has been replaced by my blog. Not that I didn't want to blog, but typing on my computer is just not the same as using a pen or a pencil to write down my deepest emotions.

I remember getting this Starbucks planner last year. I promised to update it and I did for the first two months of 2011. By March, I was too busy to even think about writing anything down on my planner turned journal.

Last week, when we didn't have electricity for 2 days, I was forced to read my Reader's Digest magazines. I subscribed to them early this year with a promise to read more, another resolution I didn't get to fulfill this year.

Anyway, I'm getting off-track. I read this article in their January 2011 issue about handwriting. The author is saddened by the loss of handwriting in our technology-driven world; how we constantly complain about our poor handwriting.

Few of us write letters any longer, even to those to whom we are close. We communicate differently when we e-mail or text, both methods characterised by speed and informality. The meditative consideration, which accompanied a handwritten letter, is almost entirely absent. We may be communicating more frequently and with more people, but the depth and quality of our communication has diminished.

- Cyndi Freiman, Author of Sincerely Yours
(Reader's Digest, January 2011, page 86)

 

I admit, I never had beautiful penmanship. But, at least, back when I kept a journal, I can still understand my writings. Now, I sometimes need to rely on contexts to remember what I actually wrote.

Whenever I attend events, I bring with me a small notebook where I write important details on what were said or had occurred. This way, I can easily go back to what happened when I finally get to writing my blog article about it.

And that's when I usually get into trouble. I sometimes write too fast, even when I'm only taking note of keywords, that I can barely read what I have on these little pages. *LoL*

So, since it's my birth month, I have decided to bring back my passion for actual writing. I still have over 2 months left on my planner / journal so I have time to go back to writing short notes on how my day went or how I'm feeling.

The feeling is really different when you handwrite. Just as Cyndi said...

...I've become addicted to the flow of thoughts that comes with the physicality of handwriting.

This is so true for me. I tend to be more fluent in my writing when I use a pen and a paper than when I type away on my computer. Just look at my journal entry about Pedring.

I didn’t have my computer at that time. I only had this log book where I decided to write about everything I could remember, all the fears and anxieties I had during that fateful day. And in a span of a few minutes, I ended up with 5 pages of written account of what happened. I had to reduce it to a shorter version for posting here (link to my post).

I am now drawn to writing more on my planner, this log book, and probably I’d own a journal with a lock and key just in case, y’know, my nanay’s struck again by her “curiosity”. *LoL*

And I encourage you, my friends, to handwrite more often. From now on, I’ll be handwriting notes to everyone I’ll be sending a correspondence to through courier. Let me know how you’re planning to join me on this. Maybe we can even be penpals? ^_^

---

You can easily get access to our best quality winter coats canada and fantastic variety in baby gift ideas. There are now excellent options for you in navy handbags and cheap leather jackets. We provide reliable cape coat, is also commonly used all over the world.