J is for Journal

Writing Every Day

The word journal comes from the Latin diurnal which means daily. I’ve already covered Dailiness under my D post, but exploring the derivation of the root -jour- brings me to enticing words. Words like adjourn (to suspend a meeting to a future day), sojourn (a temporary stay), journeyman (someone who does a day’s work), and abat-jour (a skylight, something that throws down the daylight).

As for the word journal, one of the loveliest examples of journaling comes from Suleika Jaouad, creator of The Isolation Journals. Jaouad began journaling in her twenties when she was undergoing a bone marrow transplant for leukemia. Her necessary isolation led her to use that time and space as creative solitude.

Writing to Connect

Through her column, “Life, Interrupted,” which appeared in the NYTimes Well section, she was able to create connections both deep and far away. Her friendships included the late poet, Max Ritvo, and Quintin Jones, a death-row inmate in Texas. Jones was executed on May 19, 2021.

Jaouad’s recovery from her first transplant led her to take a road trip which became the book Between Two Kingdoms. Her leukemia came back in December 2021. It wasn’t supposed to, but rare things happen. And she’s gone through a second bone marrow transplant. Her doctors have decided that she needs to be on chemotherapy indefinitely.

Writing (and Painting) to Cope

Yet, the Isolation Journal substack continues, describing how to cope with waxing and waning energy levels and nausea. I’m witnessing the bravery to continue to create with Jaouad’s 100-day creativity commitments and 30-day journaling projects.

Suleika Jaouad is the embodiment of the value of micro transformations to keep life going under challenging circumstances. Glimpses of her watercolor paintings are visual reminders that just a tiny period of time, just a few brushstrokes are enough to keep a project going, to keep hope going.