Journal-keeping feeds creativity

Pregnancy can be one of the most creative times of a woman's life. For some women that means more vivid dreams. For others, it's expressed in writing poetry, or decorating the house with unusual flair. It can emerge in a new way of dressing, or in the daydreaming that comes when listening to music. Of course, the ultimate creativity is what's happening inside your body as new life grows.

You don't have to paint the Sistine Chapel or write a novel to be a creative person. But you may have to carve out time from your busy life to give your natural creativity a chance to flourish.

To nurture that creativity, consider keeping a journal. Unlike some forms of creative expression, a journal is private; no one will judge what you write. You need not be afraid of what someone else might say about a feeling, observation, or point of view you may have. You can color outside the lines.

Pregnancy is a particularly good time to begin keeping a journal. You'll look back some day and see a very personal record of your life, at what was one of the most precious times.

Getting started

Practice recording details as you look at the familiar. Here's one example: You enter your fifth month of pregnancy on your Aunt Maude's birthday and there is a family party. You may have grown up with these people, known them all for years. Their faces are so familiar that in some ways you've stopped noticing the details. Describe their faces and record some of the conversations you hear in your journal. Describe the family meal, the comments, the joy, the tears, and the gladiolas in the cut glass bowl.
Record your memories, perhaps a major event in your childhood or your teenage years. Describe the people involved, what happened and how you felt.
Keep the journal handy. If the only time you have is on the bus or on an airplane, keep the journal in your purse or briefcase. Keep it at your bedside table if bedtime is when you can relax enough to reflect for a few moments.
Try writing a little bit every day, even if it is just for ten minutes. Your creative "muscle" will be exercised more by a daily habit than an occasional outburst.

Keeping a journal during pregnancy can launch you on a lifetime habit. Your creativity will grow and you will bring a new thoughtfulness to life's events, large and small.