Journal

Small reads about memory, journaling and keeping the days that matter.

• Why the days in between disappear (and how to keep them)We remember the big moments and lose the ordinary ones. Research shows those ordinary days are worth far more to our future selves than we expect.
• Why time speeds up as we get older, and how journaling slows it downThe 'holiday paradox' explains why routine years seem to vanish. A few lines a day give your memory more to hold on to.
• Three good things: the tiny evening habit linked to a happier mindWriting down three good things each day is one of the best-studied happiness exercises. Here's what the research found, and how to make it stick.
• What writing about your day can do for your healthFrom Pennebaker's expressive writing studies to modern trials, here's what research says about journaling, stress and wellbeing, and what it doesn't.
• Name it to tame it: why putting feelings into words helpsBrain-imaging research suggests that simply labelling an emotion can turn down its intensity. Here's how a one-line journal entry uses that.
• A two-minute evening journal for better sleepA sleep-lab study found that writing before bed helped people fall asleep faster. Here's a simple evening routine based on the research.