Years ago in ballroom dance lessons, my instructor said that partner dancing done well is actually two deftly linked solo acts. “Memorize your part independently; without your partner,” he explained. So, next, he got me to practice a rhumba box step, solo. Trust me, it didn’t look anything like that semi-hot scene in Dirty Dancing where Johnny Castle tells Baby to close her eyes and “feel the heartbeat.” Nope. For me, it was incredibly dorky, counting out “a-one, two, three, four-and…” and pacing in front of a mirror, arms framing an imaginary dance box. But, in time, it became second nature.
Years later, I began a yoga practice. Yet again, linking physical energy with mental energy took me inward, to an even more specific focus located between my closed eyes just above my nose, what yogini call the “third eye.” I came to recognize it as familiar and friendly, a centering spot to occupy during the meditative moments of practice.
“Going inside” is perhaps what scares people away from journaling honestly and with spontaneity. You wonder, “What if someone reads my journal and realizes what a messy emotional state I’m in.” That’s why it’s a good idea to keep a private journal just that – private. That way, you give yourself a special free space that even the best-intentioned friends and coworkers can’t give you. It’s your mirror, your place to work out the steps, to vent if you’ve gotta, to “blue sky” with abandon. Leave the daily errand list to your day planner.
Ready to see and hear what’s in your own head? Find a journal you can actually write in, one that’s not so precious you can’t scribble in it with a pen. The journal I am scribbling in right now: the Pocket Companion. Oh so friendly. Check them out at Paperposey.com/Pocket Companion Journals.
