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Why Writing Matters
And journaling kick-starts the process
My writing has filled the backs of envelopes, both sides of paper napkins and even my left arm up to my elbow to catch ideas dropping through the ethers into my brain. Writing matters because it is the medium through which we all filter our thoughts before pouring them into the world.
Humans have always written, whether in pictographs, syllabics, or letters. If the bible is to be believed, Moses was so intent on writing that he chiselled words into a stone tablet because he thought it mattered.
The Essenes put their words on rolls of parchment and hid them in a desert cave because it was important to them. When they were found, they became the Dead Sea Scrolls.
I, on the other hand, first put pencil to paper at age two or three while my siblings did their homework at the kitchen table. I was probably afraid I would miss something.
Reading makes one a better writer. I remember when I decided to read all the books in our house. I had made the mistake of telling my mother I was bored, and the next thing I knew, I was dusting both books and shelves. Did she know that by cleaning them, I’d end up reading them? Of course, she did.
