yesterday i finished my final paper for my independent study, the one that i bound and published for the honors program as an example of the work i am most proud of in my college career. the final entry was rather telling about me, because as i started writing i realized that the process of keeping an academic journal concurrently with the work i was producing was very beneficial. i decided that whatever writing i do in the future, from journalistic endeavors to creative writing to songwriter, will have its own journal where i self-scrutinize and work through dilemmas. i thought the idea was pretty original, until i got a note from the professor a few hours later that said, “i’m glad you are planning on continuing the journal. i think the habit of reflexity that it encourages can bring a greater depth to the writing, almost by osmosis. as i read the final lines, i thought of john steinbeck’s working days, a journal he kept while he was writing grapes of wrath. it is a journal of the daily struggle, the lows perhaps more than the highs of bringing off a masterpiece. i think you might enjoy it. you’ve done a terrific job this semester evan. your honors ‘book’ turned out very nicely i think: looking and reading well. bravo! dr. j”
now, i know what you’re thinking. and no, my professor isn’t julius erving! also, i don’t think she intended to compare me to john steinbeck, but after some of my fancy grammatical enrichments, it sure sounds like it. right now you’re probably (not) wondering what my last paragraph sounded like, to elicit such a response. Well, I’m not telling. you’ll never read it.
until right now.
“i think this experience has been invaluable. the ability to reflect and critique is often something we do inherently, but how many people sit down and hash out their ideas in a manner that will be available for future dissection? this is not a one-semester foray into the world of academic journal writing, i plan on keeping a space like this for as long as i can. if i want to succeed and be the best writer I am capable of being. it is not only an invaluable tool, it is a necessity. i am grateful for the opportunity, one that will invariably follow me as i take the next step with my writing. thank you again for the chance to make this a part of my life, and for reading through my verbose trials and tribulations. in case you were wondering, the estimated number of usages of ‘I’ in this academic journal is 6,430.”
