I became familiar with losing loved ones at an early age. My grandmother died when I was six years old. I was too young to truly process and understand what was happening, but I remember feeling sad, mostly because my parents were very sad. When I was 12 one of my closest middle school friends lost her mother. Again, I didn't fully understand. I remember being grateful that I still had my mom. At about age 13 my sister lost her lifetime best friend to a drunk driving accident. The list goes on, but the most earth shattering for me was when I lost my mother at age 21 and 5 years later lost my father-in-law. Still to this day I wish that I could speak to both of them. A direct line to heaven would be cool someday, with all of the technology in the world we should be able to communicate with our loved ones in heaven, shouldn't we?

When my mother died, I wasn't married, nor did I have children. But she had the forsite to knit a blanket for my child that would be born one day. My aunt held on to that blanket for seven years until I had my first baby girl. Wrapped in beautiful paper with a huge perfect bow, my aunt shipped it to me a few days after my daughter was born. It has mean so much to me and to my daughter, she still sleeps with it to this day. As I grew older and had my own children, I wanted to provide them with something meaningful after I was gone. I purchased 2 leather bound journals, one for my daughter and one for my son. I write to them when the mood strikes. Sometimes I write several days in a row and sometimes I go months without writing at all. I hope that someday VERY long from now, they will find comfort, wisdom and inspiration inside of them.

If you are currently writing a journal for a loved one or would like to begin writing a journal for a loved one here are some great topic ideas.

It is never too late to start! Good luck journaling.