I saw an artist on instagram doing these cute icon-like illustrations on a monthly planner view, and I was inspired to do the same. I wanted to try it since last year but never gotten round to doing it (thanks, adhd). My partner started this year because I gave her my spare hobonichi, and from her documentation of her/our memories I saw how meaningful it is to have an illustrated snapshot of how we spent our month:
So sometime this month I went back in time to complete the month of january with a traveler’s notebook monthly planner:
I tried to make the illustrations as simple as possible, and didn’t get hung up on the aesthetic. The ink smudges are very typical of me, because I have no awareness of where I put my palms after drawing. Starting from mid-jan there is this tiny storyline of my failed root canal so I thought that was quite amusing.
It is not easy for me to do something after the moment has passed…the old me would be like: it is already march, it is too late to start now. I like when I manage to change my own narrative of my self.
For me this is also an exercise in mindfulness, an opportunity to practice some drawing, and to experience another form of archival. I wonder if this would still provoke some memories when I see it years later?