This exercise, adapted (with Dr. Progoff's permission) from the Period Log chapter of At a Journal Workshop, provides a taste of the way the Intensive Journal works. Read it through once in advance to get an idea of what's involved. Allow yourself a good chunk of uninterrupted time in which to do it-an hour at the least; two or three would be even better. Provide yourself with pen and paper and a comfortable and well-lit place to write. Take the phone off the hook. At the top of the first sheet of paper, write "Period Log" and today's date.
The Period That Is Now
Begin by letting yourself become quiet. Sit in silence for a moment. Let yourself relax. Allow the immediate' worries of the day to slip away. Let your breathing become deeper and slower. Make yourself comfortable, close your eyes, and let your mind drift back over the recent months and years, asking yourself, Where am I now in my life?
If you were to see your life as naturally dividing itself into a dozen or so periods—in the way an art historian might look at a painter's life—what would the periods be? More specifically, what would the present period be? What are the characteristics of this current period of your life?
This period may have begun very recently, or it may extend back many years. It may have started with a new relationship, a new job, or a move to a new city. Perhaps it began with an idea for a new project, a marriage, or the birth of a child. Or it may have begun with a loss, a separation, or a death.
The current period of your life may be a time of hard work or a time of fallowness, of satisfaction or dissatisfaction, a time of ending or a time of beginning. Perhaps it began with an easily-identifiable event—a marriage, a birth, an accident, a change in employment. Or it may be a period characterized by a general quality of feeling—a pervasive enthusiasm or a cloud of depression.
Do not attempt to direct your thinking. Simply sit in silence and allow the thoughts and feelings to come. Allow the movement of this most recent period of your life to emerge. Do not attempt to analyze or judge. Just hold yourself in a condition of openness, of readiness, and allow the boundaries and characteristics of this present period of your life to take shape.
You will find that spontaneous answers to these questions begin to suggest themselves: What is the present period of my life? How far back does it go? What events mark it off? What have been the main characteristics of this period?
When these answers begin to present themselves, take up pen and paper and without criticizing or analyzing, record them as they come.
Period Checklist
In responding to the items on the checklist that follows, try to limit your answers to the essentials. There is much material to cover, and getting sidetracked would defeat the purposes of this exercise.
The first time through the checklist one must, of necessity, leap from peak to peak, leaving the explorations of the valleys for later. If you find yourself wanting to continue certain sections, make a note to yourself and return to that section later. But for now, read each checklist item, answer it in a few sentences—certainly no more than a paragraph or two—then move on to the next.
1. When did this period start? Did it begin with a particular event or without any specific happening? Was it clear at the time that you were entering a new period, or was it only discernible much later?