“Hello, I’ve never met you before, so it really is a pleasure. I hope the feeling is mutual.” So begins my grandmother’s ...

From hospital stays to Shabbat dinners, a few lines a day became a Jewish way of reckoning with memory, loss — and the comfort of routine. In January 2011, I wrote my first entry in a five-year diary.

Keeping a daily diary doesn't come easily to most people, but it takes less effort than you might imagine. It could also become a meaningful way to reflect and grow as a person. For more than 10 years ...