If you want to do some scrapbook journaling with photos of people or events from your life, you may find the following questions helpful to get started writing. Many people (myself included) who enjoy working with the visual images in scrapbooking find it a little more challenging to come up with ideas for writing. In this form of scrapbook journaling you are writing your personal feelings that not too many people are going to see. This is for your own healing and growth in self-understanding.
Start by looking over your photos, which one do you feel drawn to today? Or maybe there is one you want to avoid or pull back from? Notice that too. Do you feel up to writing about your resistance? These questions are open to all kinds of feelings. You can write about your resistance, if you feel that is where you want to grow.
After you have chosen a photo that seems right for this scrapbook journaling session, look over the questions below. Find one or two that feel like questions you would like to explore with the photo you have selected. Write until you have said everything you need to say about the photo and the questions you are responding to. Don't worry about grammar or spelling as you do the reflection, you can always go back and fix those things later. Just give yourself permission to write what you need to write.
Reflection Questions:
What meaning does this photo/event/person have for you?
What emotions surface as you look at this photo?
How do you feel about having those emotions?
What was the event of the photo like for you?
What is it like now remembering it?
If you linger in those memories, what feelings surface for you?
What invitation might be present for you in this memory?
Is there any place where you want to be gentle with yourself or others in this memory?
Where is there grace for you to grow?
What do you notice in your body as you look at this photo?
What do you desire as you relive this event or think of this person?
What gift would you like to have?
Where is God for you in this memory?
What would you like to say to God about your reflection?
One of the best things you can do to heal is give yourself the gift of time--to be real and honest with your feelings and then write yourself into a place of peace and wholeness. But always be gentle with yourself. Work at it as you can and don't force yourself to do things just because you "should." Keep asking for grace to move forward.
Digital Scrapbook Journaling
For many people a scrapbook journal is a blank journal book, while writing and gluing in photos. These days, with all my photos being digital, I prefer digital journals. I scroll through my photo files and find the photo I want to use for journaling. Then I upload it into my digital scrapbook software and do my journaling there as well. With My Memories Suite you can print these pages from your home printer as you go along. So you get the best of both worlds--easy access to your digital photos, with a printed journal to browse back through.