Wow - It really does not feel like it is almost 2026.
As we enter into this new year, this new era, if you will, there are so many things I want to accomplish. It has been weighing on my heart recently to really strive to be better at documenting my life, my thoughts, and my feelings. The problem arises when I begin deciding how exactly to do that.
This feeling, this calling, has been a recurring theme in my life. When I was in high school, I had an online journal; in my early 20s, I started my first blog (and my second... and third...); and in my early 30s I tried to adapt to the ever-growing social media platforms that now dominate. Throughout all of that time, I kept numerous paper journals that I would start and never finish. The problem is that I never stuck with any of them for long enough to be able to enjoy the fruits of my labor.
I don't know if it was an attention-span thing or if it was an imposter-syndrome thing. What I do know, is that 2025 was the best year of my life, and it hit me hard when I realized that I did not document hardly any of it.
When I was doing some more research, looking for inspiration to really be able to accomplish this thing I have been consistently called to do, I came across some information from my church about journaling:
“Your journal is your autobiography, so it should be kept carefully. You are unique, and there may be incidents in your experience that are more noble and praiseworthy in their way than those recorded in any other life. …“What could you do better for your children and your children’s children than to record the story of your life, your triumphs over adversity, your recovery after a fall, your progress when all seemed black, your rejoicing when you had finally achieved?” - President Spencer W. Kimball
Those are powerful words, and probably the best motivation I could have come across to keep me inspired to continue pursuing this endeavor.
Many people have goals for the new year, and I am no different. I have approximately six goals for myself in 2026, and one of them (arguably the most important) is to figure out a way to document my life that is sustainable with my lifestyle. Some options I have come across while doing research over the last few weeks are: paper journaling, planning, scrapbooking, online journaling, blogging, video blogging, and online photo-journaling.
Many of those options appeal to me, and some of them I do (inconsistently) already. Therefore, I will be choosing a few to really focus on this year and see which ones stick and which ones feel too much like a chore. My choices are blogging (here), video blogging (YouTube), photo-journaling (Instagram), and keeping a daily planner. I am hoping that at least two of these feel easy and fun enough to continue doing. And I really like how technology connects them in ways that allow them to flow together somewhat seamlessly.
I understand that this post doesn't really say much about me, but that is the beauty of this platform. I can introduce myself in my next post, and a little at a time. I can use this blog as a way to share different stories from my past and present.
See you all in 2026!
