Greetings from California, and a happy new year. I am preparing this story to share with you as we count down the last few days of 2023. I am in awe of the mere fact that we have been breathing life into BK for another year.
2023 has taught me many lessons, but the one that stands out the most is how much personal writing can mean to our inner journey. I felt the resonant power of personal writing from the interactions I had with our community, as well as my experience of reading and reflecting on my past writings. The inner world that each of us holds within ourselves is extensive if we gather enough courage to open and walk through the door. Once we step in, though, the mystical world can expand beyond our conscious thoughts. You can call it our subconscious realm, flow state, dream condition, or however you might define it. I definitely felt and explored my inner world deeply this year and enjoyed witnessing how it reflected in my every day. Through these processes, the one constant has been the presence of my favorite pen and notebook. By journaling and writing, the landmarks in my inner landscape have been remapped, and the once-lost trail that threads the past, present, and future has been synthesized.
Stories that are shared this month both portray unique maps. A.C.’s JIYU Monthly story is a visual catalog of their time spilling out of the pages. Their compositions and color schematics are always so intriguing to look at, and I appreciate them sharing a creative idea like a “palette log,” which they use on their monthly overview pages at the beginning of the JIYU notebook.
Trina interviewed her friend Khristina about her passion for keeping a journal, starting from a very young age. I am so inspired by her archive of past personal writings and planners that are treasured to be shared with her daughter in the future when the time is right. Having a tangible record of how her life has shifted and evolved over decades must be such a priceless experience.
Past writings I left behind in my old journals are crumbles that are waiting to be found, while blank pages that are open for the future ink feel like an expansiveness of the blue sky. With this inner knowing that each of us could open the door of the inner world, I feel so honored and grateful to be a part of your analogue journey through Baum-kuchen.
More than ever, I am on the quest for a life well-lived and loved, and I hope you join along!
-wakako
always a work in progress...
Northern California // January 1st, 2024
**This is from our BK Love Letter for December 2023. If you would like to see the entire love letter we sent to our community, you can browse it via this link.
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I had a thought after reading your Entry for BK & knowing your Girls contribution to it as well. That perhaps in the future there could be more “kid representation” as the Journaling Community is vast… But seems to lack a bit when it comes to Children. I’m trying to facilitate more of a space for my Girls to journal. It would be nice to have more resources for that. They enjoyed visiting BK last year & I hope to take them again.