Evie Riski is a 100-year-old resident of a small town in North Dakota who has spent every day of the past 90 years prioritizing one thing: journaling. She hangs onto a cardboard box full of her dated diaries, going back to Jan. 1, 1936, her first entry at 11 years old.
Her reasoning behind her daily commitment is simple. Riski said there was just no reason not to.
Such an easy and meaningful daily commitment comes with many benefits beyond the years of memories to reflect on one day. Although the idea of an aesthetically pleasing bullet journal complete with a fresh set of highlighters or stickers can seem daunting, all anyone needs is a favorite pen and a notebook.
Social media has boosted the popularity of keeping a journal, as TikTok currently has more than 400 million views under the hashtag “journaling ideas.” Specifically, the hobby has shifted in popularity among younger generations of Generation Z students.
College students have nothing but positive outcomes stemming from committing to such a meditative hobby. Taking the time to jot down a few notes, a few lines of gratitude or reflect on thoughts and feelings doesn’t take long and can make for a great outlet for stress.
There is no right or wrong way to complete the first blank page. But as entries become more regular, there are only good things that can stem from pen to paper. The U.S. Department of Education stated that 21% of students believed keeping a regular journal provided better critical thinking skills and deeper thinking when it came to their regular subjects.
In a time of high political tension and the emergence of “grind culture,” taking five minutes out of a busy or stressful day to journal any thoughts or feelings can make immediate tasks feel much more achievable.
The growing trend of long, busy days and pushing constant productivity is exhausting to consume daily. The illusion of this lifestyle portrayed on the internet oftentimes includes keeping journals, which is a reason why so many people are shying away from it. Productivity influencers have pushed a toxic narrative about keeping the perfect journal pages with extensive and in-depth entries or goals.
A daily entry does not have to be this intense or build to anything groundbreaking. Journaling a sentence about a recent success or a fun idea is all anyone has to accomplish. As to be expected from modern trends on social media, this maximalist idea of keeping the perfect, aesthetically pleasing journal is just as toxic and daunting as maintaining the consistently perfect lifestyle.
Riski’s decision to keep daily journals gave her a small thing to add to every day, to sum up, a culmination of memories she could look back on for the rest of her life. Such a feat in itself is enough to make anyone commit to such a simple step to improving daily life.
Abby Jenkins is a junior studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnist do not reflect those of The Post. What are your thoughts? Let Abby know by tweeting her @abbyjenks18 or emailing her at aj205621@ohio.edu.
