Journalling

Well, this year's journal is up and running. I usually start fresh each year, although I think 2007 and 2008 were in the same book. I don't like to waste paper, but it just seems like the right thing to do to start a new year with a fresh journal.

My first entry, in fact my only entry to date, reflects on the life of David. I'm almost at the end of reading through 2 Samuel. Absalom is dead and David is returning the Jerusalem. It's quite a sad picture. The whole thing with Absalom is a mess, but then life can be messy. We all make mistakes.

Maturity probably has less to do with making fewer mistakes than it does with learning to handle them better. We learn how not to get angry quickly, how not to say exactly what we think without engaging our brains first. We learn how to see both sides of an argument, how to listen and reflect back what we hear in order to clarify understanding.

And most importantly we learn how to stop blogging and pay attention to one's wife who's just come through the door!