‘S e lath leabharán ùr a th’ ann an-diugh! Today is new bullet journal day – for me anyway. Hooray!
I love a new notebook – the promise of the blank page, the fun of personalizing the cover with stickers, one place to capture all of my thoughts…
Keeping a bullet journal is one of my favourite tools for working on my Gaelic language skills. Every day I’m applying what I’ve learned to something that is uniquely important to me. It’s not a class, it’s not grammar exercises, it’s not a conversation circle. I record my own thoughts, as I think them, even if it’s just a grocery list. I only use words I know so it’s always at a level I can understand. It’s also a great incentive to keep learning more words!
I acquired my first bullet journal in 2019. After many failed attempts at keeping diaries, junk journals, and planners over the years, for some reason, this time it stuck. I love the flexibility of an open page layout where I can plan, draw, brainstorm, and make lists – all in one place.
I’d been journaling for a year or two already when I started learning Scottish Gaelic so it made sense that I’d keep notes and favourite words and phrases in there as my learning progressed.
I started writing the date, recording the weather, and doing my best with a sentence or two whenever I opened my journal. Before long I was writing as much as I could in Gaelic until there was more Gaelic in there than English.
This coming May 2025 I’ll be organizing a getting-started-with-Gaelic-bullet-journaling workshop as part of Mìos nan Gàidheal. I’ll be writing more posts between now and then with tips on getting started and keeping going with a journal of your own. I hope you’ll join me!
