On various occasions throughout my blog, I suggested a couple of reasons why writing in a journal was important – it’s therapeutic and entries could be turned into story material. Well, late last night I came up with another purpose to writing journals –  reading your old entries.

I am not accustomed to reading the past. It’s as if you are reliving those moments again. As they say, the past should remain in the past. Why look back? Well, I am the curious type, and I was curious to read what I have written. The good stuff put a smile on my face and so did the bad stuff. I smiled at all the bad things I jotted down because I realized that everything I believed I would never overcome I actually overcame.

During those difficult times, I saw everything crashing down on me. I thought I had no way out. Many entries had the same questions: Will I ever get out of this situation? Will I ever be happy in a relationship? Will I ever finish my college education? Will I find a good job? My journals were filled with endless amount of questions and doubt; it covered what was once blank sheets. Now, looking back, I laugh. I can’t believe what a silly goose I was. I was nervous and scared that I would not be successful or independent or strong enough. Ha, those nerves and fears are gone. Without noticing, I managed to fight those doubts.

The purpose of reading back on the past is to proof to one self that even though situations appear hard and impossible to battle at that very moment, we have the power to overcome any situation – as long as we set our minds to do so. Reading back can provide you that boost you need if you are slipping into the “I will never overcome this situation” mindset. If you battled hard times before, you can battle them now.