“Journal writing is a voyage to the interior” Christina Baldwin
Sometimes, a message comes through in an undeniable way. Sometimes, I still deny it. It is then that the Universe snaps its figurative fingers to force me to pay attention. Recently, I channeled a message for myself that I needed to journal around the energy of an issue, which I have been struggling with. Ugh! I do not like to journal, so I put it on the back burner. The next day, I opened a video for an online class I was catching up on, and again got the message loud and clear that journaling was the way to work it through. Again, I don’t like journaling soooo . . back burner. Following that, I did a card draw for guidance about the issue and, the cards pointed to – journaling. Oh no – I had to journal, did I mention that I do not like to journal? Well, the message was clear. I dusted off my notebook and sat down to write it all out. I doodled, I dawdled, and then I got up to make a pot of tea. I find it difficult sometimes to get started when I write in my journal.
While the water was boiling I thought about why I dislike journaling, especially given that I enjoy writing in general. I came to the conclusion that I was avoiding journaling because it forces me to dig deep and really confront my issue. More specifically, perhaps, journaling forced me to face the feelings brought up by the issue. Hmmmm – this was an interesting, somewhat scary, possibility. I decided that I would try to journal through the energetic blockage that I know is there and I need to remove to move forward. The energy overall for the past couple of weeks has been difficult, and not just for me. I have been hearing people all around me complaining about it. Some can’t get anything done, some are just exhausted, one friend just feels “stuck”. I know it is not just me experiencing this difficult energy. I dug into all the tools I usually use to unblock myself. I had already gone for a walk, and moved my physical body. I sang and danced around my living room. I meditated and did deep breathing exercises. I took a nicely scented, salty bath. I did just about everything I know to move myself out of this energy – or to move this energy out of me. I still felt stuck and out of sorts.
I prefer to journal with pen and paper, I always have. There is an energetic flow in this process for me that I don’t feel with the keyboard. In the evening, I took my notebook and favorite pen and sat down to journal. I wrote of all the craziness going on around me with family and friends. I wrote about the feelings this stirred up in me, both the positive and negative. I dug deeper into what exactly was affecting me so much. I wrote of my feelings of being off-track from my goals and how I needed to be back in balance. I explored, in detail, how I could bring myself back to center – release what wasn’t working and invite in what I needed. I wrote for a couple of hours, several pages of increasingly sloppy cursive. Eventually, I felt a real shift in my energy. I stretched and breathed deeply. I felt a sense of peace come over me. I felt the block release, I then “knew” that I was going to be able to get on track. I slept like a baby that night and awoke refreshed and ready to get back to work!
We are energetic beings in sentient bodies. We are definitely impacted by the energy around us. Sometimes we do get into a rut or feel off track. I have respect for the power of journaling to help work through these things. The emotions we bring to our energetic situations complicates things for us. I would definitely suggest journaling as an effective strategy for dealing with emotions and blocked energy. I would not advise you to do something I wouldn’t do myself. I still do not enjoy journaling, I know that some folks do. I have a friend with a bookcase full of yearly volumes dating back several decades. I am, however, open to the possibility that I may need to do it regularly to keep things running smoothly for me. I am willing to explore this going forward. It is important to be totally honest in your journal, write down the uncomfortable stuff too. When you write and release the emotions around the issue, the energy of the situation releases. Try it next time you are feeling stuck or out of sorts energetically.
For me, journaling helps me to release what doesn’t serve me. I supplement journaling with meditation, breath and movement. Together, these practices help me to bring myself back to center. Balanced and grounded, I am ready to move forward again. Journaling may or may not be effective for you. We are all individuals and have different methods of moving energy and dealing with emotions. It is certainly worth a try. We all need to keep our bodies, minds, and spirits in balance. When our energy is grounded and centered, we can S H I N E our lights brightly into the world!
Sandi Tobin 