text: Honor Thy Feelings! A Call to Journaling | Rise Gatherings
  Posted June 13, 2021 June 19, 2021 RGUser
  We are embarking on a new horizon when we consider our mental health in this decade of change. The greatest invitation is to see life differently; and if we can so choose, we can look at some of the advantages that this new world is providing as a way to engage in our own wellness.
  This year, we are consumed by what is happening on the outside. We have always been curious as people; by the news reports, social media, our country, our neighborhoods, the world. We see things come and we see things go. We have not experienced the sort of new world we are living in.
  What better time to become more one with ourselves, as we collectively have the vision of a more unified world? In this different climate of life, I have been advocating the call to journal more than ever. In my professional life as a Licensed Counselor, it has been my favorite topic; one that I recommend to everyone. I feel its' importance now is much more personal and important, as our ability to hope, stay present, to carry on, and to stay in a positive state of mind, is a call for all humanity.
  Inside ourselves we share what is happening to all of us. Journaling is part of a healthy and grounded way of honoring our mental wellness. We hear too much about mental illness as the "unfortunate virus of humanity" when instead, we need to see to mental health as each person's right to possess. To be in a natural state of peace, one must now thyself, is something I say all the time. We are all craving that peace, and this is a good place to start, a process of becoming thyself is an introduction to seeing more of life on the inside.
  As a Handwriting Analyst, I have seen the benefits of getting more people to journal as a way for them to be more aligned with their power of choice. When we are involved in our inner self, we have better access to our decisions, and our ability to go inside where our thoughts and subsequent feelings reside, we can feel life as more manageable.
  To honor our feelings is to be in touch with our inner world. Journaling is the greatest tool to capture this timeframe. We are seeking a new intimacy that is grabbing our attention. Journaling gives us a nourishing place to speak, to come to self, to choose to honor thy feelings.
  These days we are in a power play in our thoughts, and journaling gives us a chance to check in with ourselves. We have the need, more than ever now. Our mental health is an emergent responsibility during this pandemic.
  We are working to balance out energies. People are sleeping more, dreaming more, and wanting to have inner peace is more important than craving what we did in past years, which looks like a crazy calendar of events, month after month, year after year. Mental health is a call for all of us.
  Journaling is a mastery of a voice that no one will ever hear but you. It is not a to-do list, or an account of another person's wrongdoings captured on paper. Journaling is a portal in the night, a place to always bring back the light of the dark day, to become the very closest friend to ourselves. To know that we have access to our inner world, is to know our truth, and to live in that truth is more healing than worrying about tomorrow. It gives us an opportunity to wonder instead of worry and read what those thoughts are saying in our journaling is precious.
  What I find so amazing is that we are all needing to heal, and this is a source of concern for our planet. As we become invested in our own healing, we become involved with the world's. It is indeed, a new world.
  As a Handwriting Analyst who knows the importance of the written word, we can always share our gift of bringing light to people's hearts and souls. Starting to journal is a gift we can give ourselves and to anyone who would benefit from this self-serving journey to mental wellness.
  We are called to honor our feelings, and my assumption is that we also share in the desire to see to it that our fellow human beings have the same right: to have peace rise up for everyone today; is to honor life, each other, and our collective world!
  By Jo Coppola, MA, CG, LPC.
  Jo Coppola is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Certified Graphologist. She lives in South Philadelphia and works as a college counselor at Moore College of Art and Design. Jo has been studying graphology for over 35 years, teaching workshops and inviting people to uncover who they really are on paper. Jo is passionate about journaling, information to elicit self-awareness and
  grounding. "My joy is to assist people to care for their souls, which never ends, and often begins with Handwriting Analysis."