Diary vs. journal, emotions vs. thoughts

When my French teacher asked us whether we'd ever kept a "journal intime" before, I was one of two people who said no.

I wasn't being entirely honest, really. I've kept a journal of the things I did that day, back when I was 10, such as what movie I saw, where did I go for dinner, which friends I hung out with that day, etc. And there was a period of time when I had the little custom decorated with sparkly stickers book complete with a lock and key, but I wrote in it maybe 3 times, and got rid of it years ago.

But I've never really kept a longterm record of my innermost thoughts and feelings. Blogging does not count for me; that's intentionally public, diaries are usually supposed to be for one's eyes only. One thing is because I usually don't have a lot to hide. Second, some things just should not be put down in any form of print. And third, I'm just plain terrified that someone else is going to find my writings and invade my privacy. I know some keep a private diary as a form of catharsis or memory. which is cool, but I try to put my thoughts into writing, and the majority of my feelings into actions instead. I say "majority" because one has to put at least some feeling into their writings or it would be as dried-up as the Sahara.

Do I want anyone in the near future to find out my deepest, darkest secrets, a la Anne Frank? I'll say it now: no thanks. I'm not deliberately being an enigma, it's just the way I am.