How It Works
begin the day with a quote
Pick it from the Quotes and Inspiration section of the Illuminated Journey Guide book, or any other place where you draw inspiration. It would also be a snippet of conversation you heard or an inside joke. You get to choose.
choose a moment you want to remember
and jot it down in a sentence or two. This day's memory was a particularly decadent breakfast in an utterly delightful diner in Old Quebec called Le Buffet de L'Antquaire. (The Antique Dealer's Buffet. Clever, right?) You can also make a list of memorable moments on a blank page and do this activity with each one or just leave the list as it is. Even a simple list will be enough to get the memory muscles working.
make lists
of everything your senses are bringing you. Sights, taste, sounds, smells, sensations, feelings. The Guide has lists of word possibilities to keep you from getting stuck in your usual vocabulary .
awake
is for things that are waking you up in some way - new things you've tried, wondered about, learned, experienced, realized, been surprised by, remembered.
delighted
is your chance to make it a point to look for things that bring you delight and to write them down. Think micro over macro. It's a fact that the more we actively look for things that delight us, the more we find, and the more we find, the more delighted we are! How lovely, right?!
blank pages
to fill with texture, color, stories, clippings, etc. The Illuminated Journey Guide has 100+ ideas for these pages. As you can see, the point is to JUST GET IT ON THE PAGE. (I didn't make this page special for the website - it's an actual one from an actual trip.) Don't worry about making it fancy or gorgeous. Just get it down and move on.
Keep in mind: Perfection = Paralysis.
what if I...
This comes at the very end of each journal and is for your relaxed vacation-brain ideas. It started out being called the "Follow Up" list, but that felt like one more way to SHOULD on myself. This way feels more like "Hey! Look at all these great possibilities! What sounds like fun?"
Don't you agree?
What if I...
- made mac-n-cheese-n-trees?
- hosted a CROCKtober potluck?
- quit working on Saturdays?
- started meditating for 10 min every morning?
- subscribed to a monthly lingerie box?
- got the piano tuned?
Why lists?
1. We have ALL made a list at the end of a day while tired. It requires literally zero creativity.
2. List making is action.
3. We encounter the greatest amount of friction in projects at the beginning. If we can create (any) action, than we're on our way to:
4. CREATIVE MOMENTUM!