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Those ‘in-between’ spaces were where the simple practice of journaling offered me the chance to record my private thoughts, insights, and memories. Photography: Finde Zukunft.
Journaling, grounding, and gratitude
By Michael Webster
Briefly …
From the quiet rhythm of journaling to the steadying power of grounding and gratitude, Michael Webster explores how reflection can turn travel into something deeper – a journey of awareness, balance, and appreciation for the world beneath our feet.
In the pre-Internet days when I embarked on my first solo traveller adventure, my constant companion wasn’t mobile communication of any kind, because none had been invented. Instead, packed carefully into my backpack was a foolscap writing pad and a pen. Every night I would write down my experiences, thoughts, wisdom (naïve as it might have been), and observations about all that I had done that day. And in the years that have followed, that foolscap pad has become a precious and priceless memento of the world I was exploring.
I wasn’t writing as ‘a Writer’. I paid little, if any, attention to spelling, grammar, or punctuation. Often my writing was sentences … barely paragraphs … reflecting on purpose points, small questions, fleeting answers … all the details I wanted to remember. Unpack. Clear my head. And reflect. Sometimes they were facts, like where I had been and what I done, and at other times they were contemplations about how little I knew about a place I had visited and what I had learned there.
This solo adventure of mine was a seemingly endless winding path of unexpected wonder, learning, and reflection. Some days positively bloomed with discovery of significant sites, history, people, time, and place, while others mashed and messed up like cacophonies of fatigue or overwhelm. Those ‘in-between’ spaces, like the long train or coach rides, quiet street cafés, or hostel common areas, were where the simple practice of journaling offered me the chance to record my private thoughts, insights, and most importantly, memories.
“Those ‘in-between’ spaces, like the long train or coach rides, quiet street cafés, or hostel common areas, were where the simple practice of journaling offered me the chance to record my private thoughts, insights, and most importantly, memories.”
Decades of research confirm what many travellers already sense, which is that writing helps us make sense of our inner landscape. As Kathleen Adams, Founder of the Center for Journal Therapy, notes, even those who wrote for only a few minutes felt better and developed coping strategies that stayed with them (Adams, 2014).
Writing builds awareness by untangling what we feel but may not yet understand. If you are looking for a nudge, try a few simple reflections. And remember, you’re not writing as an assignment – so you can scribble single words, phrases, and things you may have overheard. Nothing needs to make sense, which is part of the process.
> Evening check-in: “What shifted in me today? What challenged me? What made me pause?”
> Sensory snapshot: capture a moment … perhaps the sound of church bells, the smell of street food, the quality of the light, or the texture of a weathered wall.
> Internal release: name what’s stirring beneath the surface. Is it anxiety, wonder, fatigue? … and let it spill onto your page.
Solo travel can feel like we are living in fast-forward, and grounding techniques offer a reset. Photography: GalakticDreamer.
Solo travel can feel like we are living in fast-forward, and grounding techniques offer a reset by anchoring us to our body and surroundings when our mind races or our energy frays. When travel feels like fast-forward, grounding can slow the reel. When I have been feeling overwhelmed, I use this simple practice (known as the ‘5-4-3-2-1 scan’) to isolate each of the elements of my senses (sight, touch, sound, smell, taste), and I write down my new experience of each of them.
“Solo travel can feel like we are living in fast-forward, and grounding techniques offer a reset by anchoring us to our body and surroundings when our mind races or our energy frays. When travel feels like fast-forward, grounding can slow the reel.”
The soles of our feet are alive with sensation, with thousands of nerve endings constantly reading the world beneath us. They provide constant sensory information to our brain about touch, pressure, temperature, and pain – sensitivity that is crucial for balance, movement, and our sense of place, even when that place feels strange or unexpected. Every surface tells a story, such as the cool slide of tile, the give of grass, or the heat of sand. This quiet conversation between skin and earth grounds us, balancing body and mind. One of my favourite things to do to truly relax, wherever I am, is to go barefoot, even for a moment.
One of my favourite things to do to truly relax, wherever I am, is to go barefoot, even for a moment. Photography: Michael Held.
Then there’s gratitude – the quiet recalibration of how we see the world. Gratitude is more than positivity, it’s a rewiring of how we see what’s possible in any day. University of California, Davis researcher Professor Robert Emmons found that those who kept gratitude journals for just 10 weeks reported 25% more happiness compared to those focusing on neutral or negative events (Emmons and McCullough, 2003). Even the simple “three good things” exercise – writing three positives each night and reflecting on why they mattered – has been shown to reduce anxiety and depression long after the practice ends (Seligman et al., 2005).
“Then there’s gratitude – the quiet recalibration of how we see the world. Gratitude is more than positivity, it’s a rewiring of how we see what’s possible in any day.”
Melody Beattie was a pioneering voice in the self-help movement, and her book ‘Codependent No More’ was named by Newsweek as one of the four most essential self-help books of all time. As Melody wrote, “Gratitude turns what we have into enough, and more” (Beattie, 1990), and gratitude has been linked to better sleep, lower blood pressure, and greater empathy.
The power of gratitude also nests in the way in which it creates a sense of perspective. I find that expressing gratitude for all that I have can alter my mood substantially and remind me that even when the day might look and feel challenging, a simple ‘I am grateful for …’ mantra has the power to change the course of my day.
Try this:
> Each evening, jot three things you’re grateful for, large or small – a helpful local, a sunrise view, a moment of quiet.
> Add one line on why it mattered, turning acknowledgment into deeper awareness and sustained positivity.
Together, these small acts form a simple travel toolkit:
1. Journaling helps process your experiences and preserve their meaning.
2. Grounding restores presence when fatigue, loneliness, apprehension, uncertainty, or homesickness creeps in.
3. Gratitude steadies the lens through which we see it all.
Solo travel is as much an inner expedition as an outer one. The skies change, the streets shift, but what remains is how we meet them – curious, steady, and open. Journaling, grounding, and gratitude need no special tools, only the time we make to pause … and our honesty, self-trust, and transparency. That’s where clarity often finds us – in the quiet, slow-motion moments of our day.
Jumble & Co releases new journal range
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If you are looking to begin or renew your own reflective practice, a new range of thoughtfully designed journals invites exactly that. Jumble & Co by Collins Debden has launched the newly expanded ‘In Two Minds’ journal collection, designed to acknowledge the daily wrestle we have with our inner emotions and support young people in managing their mental health. With youth mental health emerging as one of the most urgent challenges in the world today, the range has been thoughtfully created to provide young people with accessible tools for reflection, balance, and emotional growth.
The In Two Minds collection features four new journals joining the completed range, each serving a unique wellbeing focus:
> Sleep Journal (new) – track sleep patterns, interpret dreams, and strengthen memory retention.
> Fitness Journal (new) – record nutrition, progress, workouts, and goals, with space for new recipes and training plans.
> Manifestation Journal (new) – a dedicated space to attract desires and map out a dream life.
> Relationship Journal (new) – supports building healthy connections through trust, open communication, and mutual understanding.
> Mindfulness Journal – encourages grounding practices and mindful self-reflection.
> Wellness Journal – supports building routines, reflection, and balanced living.
> Gratitude Journal – promotes positivity by capturing gratitude and future hopes.
“Young people are telling us that they feel the squeeze from every angle – academic pressure, financial stress, and the ongoing weight of climate change and global uncertainty,” Breanna Jayne Sada, Child and Adolescent Psychologist and Jumble & Co Ambassador, tells The Solo Traveller, “… all of which is coming at them at an algorithmically fast speed on social platforms. Journaling is like exercise for the mind. Putting thoughts on paper activates the brain’s problem-solving centre while calming the areas linked to stress. Gratitude journaling can lift mood, reflective journaling helps process experiences, and goal setting builds motivation. Even five minutes a day can make the mind feel lighter.”
“Gratitude journaling can lift mood, reflective journaling helps process experiences, and goal setting builds motivation. Even five minutes a day can make the mind feel lighter.”
Designed with split-tone pages and covers, the In Two Minds collection represents the two sides of emotion, reminding us that balancing our feelings is an everyday act of resilience. Inside, the layout creates two spaces – one for calm reflection and one for messy, expressive release, showing how both sides of the mind work together to restore balance.
“The split design of the In Two Minds range is symbolic of the balance we all seek within the binary of our creative and structured sides,” Shahrazz Hayat, CEO of Jumble & Co, told The Solo Traveller. “We want to provide young people with practical tools that are not only functional but also a source of comfort, inspiration, and empowerment.”
The In Two Minds collection also supports Lifeline Australia in its mission to provide essential crisis support and suicide prevention services, with 10% of all online sales from the Collins Debden Australia site donated directly to the mental health charity.
You are not alone. If you, or anyone you know, needs support, there are organisations around the world that offer helplines where you can connect with others who can listen, advise, guide, and support. If you, or anyone you know, needs immediate support, please contact your local crisis or emergency operators.
References
Adams, K. (2014). Journal to the Self: Twenty-Two Paths to Personal Growth – Open the Door to Self-Understanding by Writing, Reading, and Creating a Journal of Your Life. Grand Central Publishing.
Beattie, M. (1990). The Language of Letting Go: Daily Meditations on Codependency. Hazelden Publishing.
Emmons, R., and McCullough, M. (2003). Counting blessings versus burdens: an experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(2).
Seligman, M., et al. (2005). Positive psychology progress: empirical validation of interventions. American Psychologist, 60(5).
Michael Webster is The Solo Traveller’s International Community Development Lead.