I’m Helene Matheny and I’ve kept journals since I was about 13. My very first journal began as a log of a series of strange dreams I was having at the time. Later they evolved to much more complex entries, peaking in my teens when I’d write many pages almost every day. This corresponded with my mother’s declining health until she passed away when I was 17.
Before and during this time, I went through a series of various interests and pursuits – astronomy, dolphins and whales, ancient Egypt, art, philosophy, Eastern religions and the New Age modalities. I also went through a series of dead-end jobs while I pursued these interests. I even lived at a yoga ashram during my 18th year and afterward became an Interfaith Minister.
Finally entering college at 25, I found my calling in the study of history, which for me encompassed all my other interests and linked them together. Although it took me seven years to get my bachelors degree, I never wavered and graduated with a BA in history earning High Honors and College Honors and as a member of Phi Beta Kappa.During my last year, I spent a summer in Russia studying the language and culture with a study-abroad program and participated in an archaelogical dig in Israel.
Just a few months after graduation, I went to London for a year and earned my Masters in Russian and Eastern European History. While in England, I traveled also to Scotland, Ireland, Israel, Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany and France and after returning to the States, traveled to Fiji, New Zealand and Australia with my then husband.
During these times, my journal writing waned, but I kept travel journals. Many of these took the form of e-mails sent to friends and family after each trip I took while in London. I printed these out and kept them bound together.
What I realized is that as I finally began pursuing some of the things I wanted to do with my life, my intense journal writing had morphed into a new extroversion. Running a planetarium, becomeing a college instructor and performing weddings molded me into a confident public speaker and teacher.
