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Padriag -> RE: Slave Journaling (8/31/2006 1:52:53 AM)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Yourkajira
my Master has decided that i am to begin journaling. He requested that i research it as it is used in D/s and to ask if anyone had any suggestions as prompts.
To answer your question, here then are my recommendations and requirements when I have a slave keep a journal. I've also added notations in italics about my reasons why for each requirement.
1) The journal should be hand written, not typed.
In my own experience, hand written journals tend to provoke more thought. There is something about the discipline of writing things out by hand that seems to stimulate the the way we think. It has a tendency to focus us, to bring things to the surface, to cause us to think more deeply about what we write. There is also something powerful about writing things out by hand, its very personal and intimate and this is very appropriate for a journal which should be both personal and intimate.
2) The journal should not be kept online, it is private and personal and should remain so.
A journal is not a place for exhibitionism. Its not about public humiliation nor spectacle. A jouranl is a place for private introspection, for personal examination. In journals we can write down our fears, our hopes, our dreams, our nightmares, our disapointments and our triumphs without shame and without reservation... because they are private. Journals are sacred, reading someone's journal without permission is akin to mental rape (not a word I use lightly).
3) A special note book should be designated for the journal, preferably something special, such at a leather bound edition.
This is about motivation. By designating a special book as a journal, and preferably purchasing a special book for this one purpose we are making a kind of commitment to the task. That helps us begin. It helps us motivate ourselves and set in motion a new habit that for many is very unfamiliar. By making it special we make it important to us, and we tend to stick to things that are important to us.
4) On the first page of the journal, write a statement of intent. This page declares who the journal belongs to, the reason and goals for keeping it. For example, the slave might declare that it is a record of their enslavement, a record of their life as a slave, etc. It might also state ambitions, such as the hope that it will record the achievements of an obedient and treasured slave.
Also about motivation. Whenever the slave begins a journal entry and finds themselves staring at a blank page that seems impossible to fill, I suggest they go back to this first page and re-read what they wrote. That simple statement of intent can become a very powerful, and empowering, statement of motivation. It reminds the slave what this book is for, what their purpose in keeping it is. Made all the more powerful by being in their own words and their own handwriting.
5) Nothing is taboo in the journal, the slave may write down anything and everything honestly, nothing said here will ever be disclosed to anyone else nor will it be used against her (she cannot be punished for anything written in the journal).
Again, the journal is a sacred place to write down and express anything the slave is feeling or thinking. There are no wrong answers, nothing that cannot be written or thought or felt. In life we hold so much back, we wear masks, we play roles. In our journals we can be as we are, unfettered and unrestrained. We can scream, we can be angry, we can be sad, we can be happy, we can be silly, we can be anything we feel or think or imagine. That's liberating, and its also helpful. It lets us see ourselves as we really are.
6) Her owner will periodically read the journal, to both ensure it is being kept and to help improve communication and understanding, to aid her in being transparent.
Communication is very important. An owner needs to understand their property intimately well. That understanding and communication helps create a better relationship, helps see to it that unspoken needs are met and fears are addressed. Owners have to be careful with this, sometimes you'll read things that may sting a bit. Those moments when in a journal a slave gives voice to disapointment or hurt at something you did, and you come face to face with that. Owners have to be prepared to take that in stride and not react to it, but instead to act to address it, to correct their own mistakes. Reading a slaves journal helps the owner not only to understand their property better, but also to see themselves through the eyes of their slave... sometimes a startling revelation.
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