Journal Magic: It's Déjà Vu All Over Again
Journaling can reveal repeating patterns—and give us a chance to break them
When we’re writing in our journals, we may think we know what’s going on in our lives. What I’ve found more often than not is that the journals will tell me more than I think I know. All I have to do is write. And sometimes, when I’m writing, I’m getting a sense of déjà vu… Where have I seen this before?
Oh. I wrote the same thing in another journal. Sometimes, the same journal.
There are healthy, skillful patterns based on successful results that bring benefit to yourself or others—those are the good kind. Then there are the less skillful, decidedly less fun repeating patterns of behavior (aka Samskaras, one of the spiritual principles I wrote about in Yoga Mind). Sometimes, there’s an awareness of the pattern, and you’re mentally shouting “Don’t go on the basement!” Other times, our patterns have become so habitual, we may not even think about them; they just kick in.
Some of my repeating patterns have slight variations on the theme, like remakes of movies you’ve seen before; the actors and time period may change, but the basic plot is the same. Some of my pattern revivals include returning to friendships that are one-sided in the hope that they magically become two-way streets; revisiting old, safe projects instead of starting new, unknown ones; and fretting about money.
When I’m in these feelings, they seem to make sense. Why wouldn’t I give that friend another chance? Why not stick with the tried and true? When I’m writing, and I’m writing the same thing I’ve written before—about the disappointment, the stagnation, the repetition without resolution—I’ve seen the pattern. I can trick myself, but my journal doesn’t lie.
Thankfully, this gives me an opportunity to rewrite that bad script.
Get full access to all the Journal Magic posts, plus Yoga Mind, by clicking below to upgrade to a paid subscription!
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Suzan Colón to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.