Jump Write In

Summer is here and with that comes (or should I say goes) the migration out of the heat.  Some Tucsonans leave for several months at a time while others travel only few days or weeks, seeking out cooler temperatures.  You can buy travel journals with guided, fill-in-the-blank style pages, or just use postcards and a scrapbook or regular journal. All of these are great ways to record your excursions, but for those of you who travel with a packed agenda, here are three suggestions for short and simple journal entries to help you capture the memories.

1.  Include  your feelings and  thoughts as well as observations. When you are in the midst of your sightseeing, you may not have the time for in-depth, detailed writing but you can jot down a short list of feelings or thoughts about what you’ve seen, felt and heard. Take care of the details later in a longer writing session.

2.  Use postcards as prompts. Picture postcards can help recall detailed memories of the places you are writing about.  Sometimes they are pictures of hard to reach areas or unusual occurrences that you may not see otherwise.  Be sure to date them before gluing or taping them into your journal or scrapbook, then write your entry for the day.

3.  Write letters and postcards to yourself. You can easily capture an important moment when you take postcards with you to write notes on. You can mail them to yourself so they will be there when you arrive home, or you can put them in your journal and write more later.  To store them I suggest getting a notebook or scrapbook with plastic sleeves which allows you to see both sides of the postcard.

It doesn’t matter which method you choose to record your trip, but do be sure and date your entries. This is especially important if you are using postcards.  Also remember while traveling to keep them in an envelop as they tend to get scattered and out of order otherwise.

I hope these ideas will inspire your creativity and journaling while you travel.  Trips often include a full schedule with little down time.  Carrying postcards or an easily accessible pad of paper in your travel bag, backpack or purse provides easy means to recording something important as it is happening. You can always write the details later.

Until next time, safe and happy travels.

Walk in beauty, write life with passion!