Diaries, diaries, diaries
Diaries are always special as they share personal thoughts that people usually keep to themselves. They are a vent, a friend and a companion.
What are diaries ?
Diaries are special for they show us the thoughts of people that we often do not know by just looking at them. This is why even romantic stories use diaries to convey emotion. In fact, we often see the hero or heroine reading diaries to understand the love of their life. In a sense, diaries are the blueprint of feelings and many do inspire us.
Many of us know about the diary of Anne Frank who shared her thoughts and feelings despite being in a terrible situation. She passed away but her diary gives many of us, including me, a lesson of never giving up on life. The fact that her diary was not lost is a wonderful gift to humanity not just for knowing history but understanding the strength of hope and spirituality. For it shows all of us how a young girl thought of the inner world and maintained her own strength by sharing love and compassion, even in those difficult times.
Many of the Indian freedom fighters also maintained diaries to share their innermost thoughts and feelings while in jail. This does indeed show us that the human being never gives up on life but is always hopeful and aspiring for a better future, whatever the circumstances in the outer world may be. In that sense, a diary is a great connection to our inner world and self and therefore, to the divine.
A diary is now used only to maintain a to-do list or shopping list. Would it not be also useful if we maintain it for connecting with our own inner selves.
Even writing the name of God, like my late mother in law used to do, is also connecting with our inner self, in a way for this is surely a kind of chant and a prayer. She would even ask all our family members diaries instead of sarees and would use some for writing songs and many for writing the name of God. Some temples in India ask us to write the name of God in diaries and keep them near God’s idol to encourage bhakti or devotion.
In this context, my daughter used to get very stressed in her growing up years. I knew that this was because of worrying too much unnecessarily so I gave her a diary that would help her write down what her thoughts were. I did not ask her what to write but just asked to write down what her worries were so that she could look at it later and understand it was not a big deal. This definitely seemed to help in her case for she now is a diary lover and even gifts it to her friends,
For an adolescent, a diary surely helps as most of their feelings are kept hidden within themselves which is why writing helps in releasing it. This is why most psychologists ask their clients to maintain diaries suggesting a suitable pattern.
Though we are materially rich, mental health is still an issue. The World Health Organisation says mental health is a major issue in today’s world, especially among adolescents. Could a simple diary help?
By Jamuna Rangachari
