I walked into Papyrus one day to purchase a bridal shower card and gift bag. After a few minutes of quick browsing, I almost walked out of the store with only the items I needed. That is, until I saw the display shelf of notebooks and journals. I bet you can guess what happened next — I stopped. It just couldn’t be helped! I couldn’t take my eyes off this, that and the other…oh, and even more.
I never thought of myself as someone who would enjoy collecting things. But I was wrong. Some people are avid about collecting coins, others collect stamps and yet others collect Beanie Babies (hello, 1990s). If I were to collect anything, I’m pretty sure it’d be journals and notebooks.
I fought against buying anything from the display, but in the end, I picked up a 2-pack of the Volant Moleskine journals anyway. I walked up to the register and had a surprisingly enlightening conversation with the store associate. It went something like this:
Him: Did you find everything alright?
Me: Yes, I did, thank you. I shouldn’t be buying these notebooks…but I had to pick them up.
Him: I get that way every time I see journals in the store. I have plenty of blank ones on my shelf, but I continue to purchase new ones anyway.
Me: Same here.
Him: You shouldn’t hesitate. I’d suggest picking up the journals whenever you want them. Because you know what? You’ll eventually fill them up with the most creatively written ideas and thoughts — so creative that you never would have imagined them coming to mind before.
And he’s right. For me, there’s something that’s incredibly fulfilling about writing in journals, so why hesitate? I’ve written before about how I start almost every writing project with pen and paper, so I think I’d rather continue to fuel that fire.
Not to mention, I let ideas float away from me far too often. Like bubbles ascending toward a bright blue sky, those ideas pop, and I can never find them again. Keeping that in mind, I’ve started to make sure I always have one of my notebooks with me — whether in my purse, in my car or in a coat pocket — to make sure I can capture each of my thoughts in an instant. That’s an important takeaway from Aristotle Onassis: “Writing ideas down will make you act upon them. If you don’t write them down you will forget them. THAT is a million dollar lesson.”
So from here on out, you won’t find me hesitating in bookstores when I see a journal or notebook and instantly fall in love. You’ll instead see me walking away with it and either adding it to my collection at home or dropping it into my purse.
One day, the pages will be full.
photo credits:
Amir Kuckovic via photopin cc
[Clint] via photopin cc
Jeff Kubina via photopin cc
Love it!!
I couldn’t agree with you more! I have notebooks and journals that date back to my days in middle school — it’s always great to reflect on how you were then and where you are now, particularly in the development of your own writing.
Definitely! I have notebooks and journals from years and years ago, too. They always make for a good laugh.
I love journals and notebooks too! I have my own little collection
This is my first time visiting your site! I will definitely be returning!
Hi Dori,
Thanks for visiting my blog — I’m happy to hear you’ll be returning! And of course, I’m glad to see we are on the same page when it comes to journals and notebooks. They are awesome.
I love the Onassis quote-I’m a huge notebook/journal user myself and I’m glad to see there are other people out there with my….ahem….extreme fondness for them:)
Yes, the Onassis quote is one of my favorites. It’s a great one to keep in mind! Thanks for your comment.
I could have written this post! (Except I didn’t have that conversation with the Papyrus cashier haha). I have WAY too many journals/notebooks, and most of them are empty so far.
Haha, I know! This one is right up your alley.