5 Favorites, Surprises, and Lessons from Keeping a 7-Day Quarantine Journal
For seven days, from April 13 through 19, 2020, I made daily entries in my Quarantine Week Journal. I didn’t make up any of my own prompts. I used Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s guided journal called a Week in the Life of Me, but made a new cover (that I taped and glued over hers) to customize my own version.
I chose this project because I wanted to document a significant moment in history AND because it was small enough to finish with a limited bandwidth. No writing experience necessary.
While my quarantine experience has not been personally devastating and I am having lots of transformational ah ha moments, I don’t want to be tone deaf to any of you who are experiencing true trauma during this season in our lives. I know many humans on our planet have no time or bandwidth to write in cute little journals. But, I hope those voices get heard too. That’s the whole part of this story. While I can only share my experience, please know that I have compassion and kind thoughts for you all.
Five Favorites
Maybe these will inspire a quick freewrite of your own, or a fun conversation around the dinner table tonight.
What’s currently tacked to the front of your fridge right now?
What books would you take to a desert island (no more than 8)?
Make a list of slang (or quarantine specific words and phrases) that you’re using right now.
Finish these sentences…
I’m looking forward to…
I so love it when…
I still don’t know how to…
I honestly can’t believe…
I am hopeful about…
Greater than or less than? This prompt was a list of opposite items and the prompt asks writers to put in a greater than or less than sign. Fast and fun, and filled with irony. For example, what’s greater or less than - going out or staying home?
Five Surprises
I actually finished it!
I would take a lot more poetry anthologies to that desert island than I expected.
The prompts are whimsical and then they go deep. Amy Krouse Rosenthal is good at sneaking those deep questions in between the light ones. For example, when was the last time you cried?
When asked, “Whats on your current playlist?” I had no answer. When did I stop listening to music?
I have a solid dream for what I hope retirement will look like for my husband and me. It involves a trailer, national parks, birding, hiking, visiting, reading, writing, and happy hours.
Five Lessons
I need to reach out to friends more. One of the entries had us list special friends. I realzed my list included lots of beloveds that I haven’t called or seen in far too long. Need to change that - even if it’s setting up virtual Zoom dates.
Quarantine is a time of great irony. One of the prompts had me create a travel wish list. Or, I was asked to rate which I like better - staying home or going out, wearing sweat pants or getting dressed up. Definitely answering differently during this season.
Permission is the WORD of quarantine for me. I am giving myself permission to do - OR NOT DO - a lot of things. One of the biggest is sitting in the sun and just being chill. I never do that. I often feel guilty, but not anymore.
I want to listen to music like I read and write - often!
Everyone experiences quarantine differently.
