Ruth has been setting a great example by journaling and writing a lot lately, which has encouraged more reflection on my end. This past Sunday, we also started a discussion group series on C.S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters, which feels pertinent:
Even if a particular train of thought can be twisted so as to end in our favour, you will find that you have been strengthening in your patient the fatal habit of attending to universal issues and withdrawing his attention from the stream of immediate sense experiences. Your business is to fix his attention on the stream. Teach him to call it "real life" and don’t let him ask what he means by "real".
For context, this book consists of a fictional series of letters between a senior and junior demon, illustrating how we fall or are directed away from God. This past year indeed felt like a "stream of immediate sense experiences", reacting to my environment without much rigorous introspection. It's easier to not think too hard, especially after once again relocating to an entirely unfamiliar place, without strong friendships to foster insightful conversations and reflection. Too many pragmatic considerations vying for my attention: surviving classes, developing a routine, figuring out long distance, maintaining a car, trying to establish community.
It's a new year, and maybe a good time to pick up some kind of regular writing routine again. History indicates that these journaling impulses reliably die out within a few weeks, but I suppose it's still better to write a few posts once in a while than none at all. Maybe it will help having Ruth as a writing partner.