Journal JarsThese are the neatest things! It would be easy enough to give someone a book on memoir-writing, and tell them to just start writing. And that might be motivation enough. However, a whole book can be overwhelming to some people, or they may just not take the time to read the whole thing. Another way to get someone (including yourself!) writing about his or her life is to give them a "journal jar". Make a list of questions you would want to know about that person's life. Consider all the things you want to know about your great-grandparents, for instance, the questions you never got answered. Write these questions down on paper, and cut the paper into little strips, one question per strip. Place the strips in an empty jar, either pretty glass or even a cleaned-out empty peanut butter jar. The theory behind a journal jar is that the recipient will remove a slip of paper each day/week/month, and respond to the question. Each question is meant to evoke a memory, hopefully encouraging the person to WRITE THAT STORY DOWN (or at least share it verbally). You can make the jar pretty by covering the lid with fabric and a ribbon (here's a picture of a completed one). What a wonderful gift! Don't hesitate to make one for yourself too! Any way you can encourage YOURSELF to save your stories is wonderful! And remember, each of these journal jar prompts can be the subject of a scrapbook page! You will never lack a subject for a page again! (Read more about using prompts as inspiration for scrapbook layouts here) And don't worry if you don't have a picture for the memory that comes to mind -- read more about scrapping with few or no photos here. Here are some links to sites that offer hundreds of questions to include in a journal jar:
Go ahead....save some stories with the gift of a journal jar!
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