THE PAPER:
The Wall Street Journal | March 08, 2017 | Life & Arts | A15 | "There's This Cute Boy...Secrets to Getting Teens to Talk"
Studies have shown that the top wish among all teen girls is for their parents to communicate better with them. Really? I thought it would be for their parents to buy them more tea and books (lol). On a more serious note, however, an article in The Wall Street Journal explained how the written word can facilitate communication between teen and parent. I actually have a first-hand experience with this suggestion; as a teen I kept a diary and my mom would “respond” to my expressions. I still have the diary and want to share it with you!
In this article, you will discover my take on The Wall Street Journal’s suggestions and my very own experience regarding writing in a diary. Be sure to subscribe to Tea End Blog so that you may be automatically entered to win FREE tea, books, stuff during Tea End Blog Give-Aways! Already subscribed? Tell a friend!
The article explains how sharing a journal can help teens and parents communicate about problems and even discuss personal topics. Here is The Journal's "Tips" for keeping a diary:
1. Keep It To Yourselves; I would have been mortified if my mom had shared my diary with someone else, or if one day I noticed that someone else had written in it. The diary was mine and hers and I felt more secure knowing that she was the only one reading it.
2. Decide How Frequently You Would Like To Write To Each Other; As a teen, I really did look forward to writing in my diary and reading my mom's responses, however, I remember being occupied with other activities making it hard for me to find time to write. I was only able to write about once a week so anything more frequent than this would probably be more of a bother.
3. It's Not All About You; My mom never wrote in the diary about herself or her worries. She would simply address my concerns and expressions which made me eager to see her response. If my mom had made it about her I don't think it would have been as pleasant.
4. Start Small; As a little girl, my mom would leave me letters in my lunch box and so I became familiar to her written encouragements and responses. The day that I saw that she had written in my diary, it did not feel like an intrusion in my privacy but more like a reminder that she was always there for me which was comforting.
"You listen differently when you're reading something."
- Ms. Jacobs penned by Anne Marie Chaker for The Wall Street Journal
Thanks to The Wall Street Journal I could recall a memory that warms my heart. I don’t have any children, but I think I would keep a diary with my teens. It just seems like a very tea sipping bookworm thing to do…
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Do you keep a journal?