Journal Writing—The Letters You’ve Never Written

One thing we know for certain is that journal writing has the capacity to bring improvements in mental and emotional health to those who partake in it.  When we write in a journal, we partake in an exchange of information, ideas, and emotions in a way that we cannot do easily outside of a journal. 

Journal writing can take on all kinds of different forms, methods, and styles.  One writer may journal solely for the purpose of organizing creative ideas for short stories, whereas another writer may engage in journal writing to make peace with the past by writing about the memories stuffed away in dark closets.  Using a journal in a way that no one else does is perfectly acceptable; there is no law that says every writer must write the same.

As well, journals can be flexible and contain a variety of different pieces within its pages.  As journals meet a variety of writing needs for its writers, so its flexibility is a part of its beauty.  A journal that allows a writer to collect notes for a professional development conference, brainstorm a short story, and relieve memories from a decade ago is a highly valuable tool on several levels—professional, creative, and personal. 

One way that writers can participate with journals is to write letters.  A journal can be written with any intended audience, and sometimes this is a useful tool to jumpstart creativity or memory stimulation to write to a specific person or audience.  When we write to someone in particular, we can tap into a different level of creativity and contact deeper messages to communicate.  
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Letters You’ve Written But Never Sent 

Once upon a time, I wrote letters as a means for recording details of events from the past.  Like most people out there, I have some events in my past that caused me ongoing harm and I needed to find a way to release the effect those held on me.  By writing, I was able to tap into the dark memories. 
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By writing about them in a letter format, I got much closer to connecting to the truth of the events than I would have if I had been writing stories or in an essay-format.  The letter allowed me to communicate more directly, and that opened up new messages that I would not have tapped into had I written a more standard journal format.  

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Examples of Unsent Letters 
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Grandpa Daniel—I would like to write a letter to my grandfather to ask him about his life.  He was born in Ireland, grew up in Australia, and moved to the US as a young man.  While in the US, he tried several times to take his family back to Australia but circumstances never worked out.  He lost my grandmother who was disallowed surgery following childbirth that could have saved her life because a priest had to be available to approve uterine surgery.  After her loss, he grew a hard shell and suffered a series of terrible losses during the Depression and afterwards.  I would like to write and ask him about his life, ask what he would have changed, and ask him about what went well.  I think his story is an important one to hear, and although he passed long ago, I would still like to know it. 

Fawne—My childhood best friend died much too young, and her loss riddled my heart with holes.  I would like to write her and take note of the wonderful memories we created.  I would also like to let her know that I should have called her more often, I should have told her how important she was, and I should have made a greater effort to be there for her. 

Ray Bradbury—Bradbury was an exceptional writer who noted his writing habits in a book called Zen in the Art of Writing, which is a collection of essays on his views and habits on writing.  He wrote every day of his life and cultivated ideas for thousands of stories through those hours of daily writing.  I would like to write to Bradbury and ask him to coach me.  I would like him to agree to email me every day to remind me to write, to read over my work and make suggestions, and to keep me on the productive path, since I tend to take on too many ideas at once.
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These letters are just three of the list that could be written.  The idea is that not only can a letter be written to someone in the present, which could potentially be sent, but a letter could just as easily be written to someone in the past.  Of course, it could not be sent but the benefit to the writer is still there.  

What Might We Share in Letters? 
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Writers may be able tap into a wide variety of emotions, stories, ideas, and purposes by connecting with a greater assortment of genres in letters.  The letter can be written to anyone, at any time, and for any reason.  This can open an incredible array of opportunity for journal writers. 
 
Gratitude—Communicate appreciation and gratitude to a mentor or a person who laid the path for you to achieve your own goals.

Anger—We cannot always let our angry emotions out in public, but a letter is a place where we can say anything that we need to, including communicating our darker emotions.

Frustration—Sometimes people get in the way, block our progress, or create barriers that slow our advancement—all of which creates frustration as we are trying to reach our goals.  Write a letter to one of these people. 

Stifled Communication—What we have not said but wanted so dearly to say could have changed everything.  Say it now. 

Acknowledgement—Recognizing that what happened did in fact happen is an incredible step in truth making.  Write a letter that acknowledges the truth.  Include an apology, a reason, or a request if needed.

Sharing Stories/Memories—Much of our writing may be the simple sharing of stories—both our stories and the stories we want to hear.  Write a letter that shares one of your stories that needs to be communicated, and write a letter that asks someone to share a story of their own. 

Relief of Regrets—Not a one of us walks this earth without a regret.  Sometimes we say the wrong things, we make the wrong choices, and we suffer the consequences.  Release those regrets in a letter and make peace with the past. 

Mentoring—Your mentor may be across the country or across time, but that does not mean that you cannot write and ask for advice, direction, and guidance.  Write your mentor (this can be anyone—Gloria Steinem, William Shakespeare, or George Washington) and connect with this person. 

 
The letters that you have never written do not have to be sent.  There is no requirement that a letter written must be placed in an envelope and mailed.  Letters can be a place to collect one’s thoughts, consider different ideas, say the words that we cannot speak aloud, or share what is impossible.  Incorporate letter writing into your journaling practice and see how it affects your overall writing and well-being.  

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