During our anniversary celebration at the beginning 2019, we held a workshop on Health & Handwriting. There we discussed how writing engages motor skills which then activates more parts of the brain.
More neurons are activated when writing by hand (vs. typing) due to physical motion. Writing by hand physically connects you with the words; and allows your brain to focus on them, understand them, and learn from them, thus minimizing distractions around you.
During this GRATITUDE CHALLENGE,
we will engage in several journaling activities.
They will be 5-minute “brain dumps.” Who doesn’t have five minutes to spare?
- Prepare by having a pencil or pen and paper.
- Silence your phone. (It’s only 5 minutes!)
- Read the prompt, decide on your answer, and then write.
Try to write for five minutes straight. Don’t let your pen stop!
If you don’t know what to write, write something like this: “I don’t know what to write, but here I am writing silliness because Kari told me not to stop, but I’m supposed to be writing about a place that makes me happy. For me, that’s camp. Camp was always…”
If you have not done this before, it may seem difficult, but it only requires practice, and we have two weeks to practice together, so let’s get started!
Grab your pen and paper and and do a 5-minute brain dump.
Ready? Here’s your question:
WHAT PLACE MAKES YOU FEEL HAPPY?
Maybe it’s a place you visit regularly or maybe it’s somewhere you haven’t been for a really long time; but your memories of that place make you feel happy, loved, or safe. You can describe the place OR you can write about why you would go there. Maybe you write about the people you would see when you there OR maybe it was great because you didn’t see anyone.
Who knows? This isn’t about complete sentences and perfect grammar (and that’s coming from a former English teacher!). If you change your thought mid-sentence, jump to the next line, start a new phrase, and keep writing! DON’T GO BACK TO CORRECT. Just write it again the new way you thought to say it.
Try to have your pen keep pace with your thoughts; it’s harder than you think!