The Magic of Journalling

January is such a strange time of year. In nature, it is the time when things are quiet and slow and resting. The days are short, and it is dark when most of us leave for work and again when we return home. For us in the shop, it is when we are quietest in terms of customers but busiest in trying to get any big jobs done - either building maintenance or any big projects like clearing through backlogs of books to be processed or moving things around in the shop. It's also the time of year when Paul and I sit down and plan out the year ahead and what we'd like to achieve both personally and professionally. On New Year's day, I take a couple of hours to myself to review the previous year and then look ahead for what I'd like for the next one. Then at some point after that, we both arrange to sit down together and work out a joint plan. I find it so useful to take that time to write out your thoughts. Which is why I was totally delighted when I crossed paths with Karen Bentley-Brown late last year when she ran an 'introduction to journalling' session.

Over the years, Karen has realised the importance of self-care and personal resilience in helping people to achieve their goals and stay true to their purpose and values. She started her journalling practice back in 2019, just before the first Covid lock down, and during the enforced time at home it helped her focus on enjoying the moment AND on planning a better future. When relationships with colleagues, friends or family have been difficult, she has been able to vent her frustration and work out her emotions on the page rather than face to face. And whilst seriously ill recently she was able to keep a gratitude journal which helped her concentrate on what she had, rather than what she didn’t have, plus what she could control rather than what was out of her control. More than anything, journalling has helped her find her voice and tell her stories.

Karen is now offering a journalling session at the bookshop with us this month and we'd be delighted if you could join us. Places for the session are really limited as this will be a more interactive workshop, so do get booked in as soon as you can. You can book tickets here.