WEEK 2 (Telling the True/Real Story)

Last week we focused on why we create and what we hope to accomplish through our art. We also had a fun assignment to make up a story about a miscellaneous picture or just ones we had found. Not everything in this world that is written is factual. I would say that the majority of novels written today would fall into the category of fiction even though the author may have been inspired to write the story because of something he or she had experienced. I am not advocating that we make up stories just so our journaling will be fun to read, but sometimes it is the small details of our lives that make a story interesting.

Have you ever been to a flea market or garage sale and seen a basket full of old pictures? I have and I’ve even purchased a few. As I look at these pictures I wonder who these people were. They had to be the son or daughter of someone; did they get married; did they have any children; what were their dreams? The one thing I do know is that they were important to someone and now they are just pictures lying in a basket with no story to tell. I don’t know about you, but I find that to be so very sad. I want my life to have made an impact on my family and the people around me and not forgotten and lost on a flea market table.

I think one of the reasons we don’t tell our story is that we think we have to be an English major to journal or have gotten an “A” in penmanship in school – both are so far from the truth. Even how you write tells something about you. I prefer to journal in a language that is similar to how I speak. I write with conjunctions, slang, and even misspellings because it will let my grandchildren know that even though I may not have been a polished speaker or speller, I still loved them. Our journaling doesn’t have to be worthy of being on the best seller’s list; it just needs to be real.

So now that we have laid some more groundwork, let’s move on.

When I first started putting this class together I was immediately reminded of a page that I had done years ago. I am going to show you this page before we end this class so no peeking at the bottom of the lesson. Stay with me for just a little bit, then it will all make sense.

Do you know what you are really saying when you write, “We Had Fun” on your scrapbook page? I think if you are honest with yourself you will agree that what you are trying to say is, “I really don’t want to journal on this page”. Am I right?

My son loves to show his animals at local fairs and sometimes pictures give you a misconception of what was actually happening. You see him standing with his animal; smiling; holding a blue ribbon; and all looks well and a person may think to themselves, “Wow! That must have been some day!” Or, “That looks like it was so much fun!”

Well, just like Paul Harvey, “Now, for the rest of the story….”

“We spent the night before the show trying to get the trailer lights fixed. Anyone who has a trailer knows that the lights never work when you need them to and they are hardly ever easy to fix. We grabbed the show halter that we used last year and realized that the halter no longer fits. Now we have to go to town to locate a show halter. No one carries the kind we need so we had to buy one that was less than perfect and pay twice as much for it than if we had ordered one from the catalog. We get to the show and the cows are mad and they just want to go home. One wants to kick and the other wants to rare up and neither of them want to be there. The entry fees for the local show were well above what the major shows charged and now the fair board informs us that we will have to show on the parking lot because they do not have a ring available for the dairy cows. Right after Justin won his first blue ribbon his cow decides to rare up again and almost kicked him in the chest. Justin started to get frustrated and lost his concentration while showing and could not even answer simple questions that were asked by the judge. The day was exhausting and everyone was glad the show was over and head back home!”

But, on my layout I write something like, “Justin won Showmanship. It was a great day!”

The truth of the matter is this: “NO! It wasn’t a great day!” But who wants to know what really happened? Everyone. Can you imagine years later when you look back at these pictures and laugh about all of the struggles and mishaps that happen when you are showing animals? So what if things didn’t go smoothly, nothing in life does and our scrapbooks should reflect the imperfections of life.

I told you earlier that I would show you one of my pages from years ago, so here it is:

I have intentionally erased the journaling so I could ask you a few simple questions.

• Can you tell me what/who is in the pictures?
• Can you tell me what is being eaten?
• Can you tell me what Justin and Michael are doing?

The answers to the questions are:

• Gordy (our potbelly pig), Justin, & Michael
• Watermelon
• Swimming

How many did you get right? I hope you got at least 2 of them right. Maybe you didn’t realize that was a potbelly pig, but that is okay.

And here is the layout as it appears in the book:

Title: Memorial Day
All Products used are Creative Memories

Journaling: Justin & Michael having fun in the water. “Gordy the Pig” eatin’ watermelon. Slurp –slurp, smack – smack – it sure was good!”

Have I told you anything that you couldn’t have figured out yourself?

My husband was the one who really encouraged me to start scrapbooking. He seemed to realize that I had a need to be creative but what he didn’t know is that I had no clue about journaling or telling a story. He would compliment me on my pages that I had created, but he would always make silly jokes about what I had written. He would say things like, “I sure am glad you told me that Justin and Michael were swimming because I wouldn’t have been able to figure that out!” He did help me with my journaling over the years and I still rely on his input when I get into a rut. You see, I want to pass on something more than just the obvious. I want to get to the heart of the pictures. I want them to come alive and speak to the reader and let them leave feeling like they have made a new friend, not just looked at some pictures.

What could I have done differently on this page? Did you know that is was an extremely hot day? Did you know that we had just bought that pool for the boys? Why did I give Gordy an entire watermelon? Here is the rest of the story – This particular year, the watermelons were bad. They lacked flavor and color and I tried my best to get a good one and I never could. After cutting into another tasteless watermelon, I decided to throw it to Gordy to see if she would eat it. She loved it! We laughed so hard because as she was eating it she was blowing bubbles in the juice with her snout. She also ate the entire watermelon and spent the rest of the day walking about 10 feet then stopping to go to the bathroom. I am not sure how long this went on, but it seemed like every time we saw that pig, she was stopping for a potty break!

Do you see the difference?

ASSIGNMENT 1

I want you to go get some of your journaling that you may be starting to feel unsure about now that we have delved into the heart of journaling. I want you to find someone that really doesn't have an inside knowledge of the event that is taking place on your project and ask them to look at them. Make sure you have your journal with you when you and the other person are looking at these pages. Ask them if they understand the whole story behind the photos, or do you need to add further explanation. Maybe as you are looking at these pictures with this person, you may remember some funny thing that happened that you never recorded. I want you to jot these things down in your journal. Then I want you to add this information to your project. You can do this very simply by creating a hidden tag or even writing on the back of your page or project.

Maybe you are comfortable with all of your journaling – then start from scratch. Grab some pictures and journal that hidden story that you don't see at first glance. Your story might likely be about something that is totally unrelated to the event in the picture. Maybe it was some funny or unusual happening at a wedding or anniversary party. Or maybe it was during a sport that your child was to participate in and they were more interested in playing in the dirt than being a part of the team. Whatever it is, find the story and tell about it.

Once you have completed this assignment, post your project in the gallery and tell us how you changed the journaling whether it was using a tag, hidden journaling, or creating a brand new project.

ASSIGNMENT 2

This assignment may be very difficult for some, but I want you to work through it. I want you to get a photo that is difficult to journal about. Maybe it is one that you have been putting off for some time or one that you have already scrapped, but you have glossed over the event. Either way, get that photo and really ponder about the event, the person, or whatever it may be. Then I want you to open your journal or blog and just begin to write. Pretend that you are telling a dear friend about how you are feeling when you look at this picture. Let the feelings flow onto the paper. You may get sad or angry, but just write it down. If you want to adhere a copy of your photograph with your journaling, please feel free to do so. Also, I don't want you to just write a few words, I want you to fill the page – fill two if you need. Don't stop until it is all out there on paper.

Next, take the journaling and the picture and complete a layout or project. Don't worry about the embellishments; just make the picture and the journaling the focus of this page then upload your layout into the gallery. Feel free to use hidden journaling on your layout or cover it up if you need to. You are not obligated to share your journaling.

You may want to also read article How To Stop Journaling Block In Its Tracks by Amy Elkins

Don't forget to upload your assignments to the "Ink What'cha Think!" gallery.

See you for the next assignment!!

Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4