Today is the National Day on Writing, a celebration proposed by the National Council of Teachers of English and supported by Congress in 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012. We’re still celebrating this year even without Congress’s support (sound familiar?). I think it’s a big deal when our government says to a bunch of English teachers, “Hey, yeah. Nice work. Let’s celebrate this thing called writing. Did I use that comma right?”

This year, the theme is “Writing to Connect.” Most of us are focusing on how we write to connect with others, but I’d like to remind us all of how important it is to use writing to connect with ourselves. How do I do that? By writing in my journal every morning–or almost every morning. If I’m disconnected from myself, chances are I’m not going to be able to connect very well with anyone else.

I like the honesty journaling allows me–the brain and heart and soul room to write through to what’s bugging me, to what I want to celebrate, to the mundane moments no one else will notice. Those silly quotidien yawn things–feeding the cats, wondering if the $12.99 reading lamp I bought will ever steady its light, thinking I can put off a haircut for another three weeks–those things that are important to no one else, they get noted on my unlined paper. And when I note those sillinesses, I often uncover platinum insights–about my own character challenges, about an amends I want to make, if I’m afraid of death this moment and why not. #write2connect #pimawrites