I’ve just been exploring this website for several minutes and I came across the topic of emotional literacy and listened as Gary explained what it means and also about being emotionally illiterate and how developing emotional literacy takes time just as learning the alphabet and then words and then to apply those things to reading. It caused me to realize at just what a basic level I am truly at in this. I don’t think I’ve quite connected with all of the talk about why it’s so important to describe how you feel in your body before this. I can say to someone, “Yes, I am feeling pain.” or I can say to myself inwardly, “Yes I feel pain. I’m having pain, so I must be in fear.” But I could not really understand why the description needed to go any further than that. I think I thought of these things very, very, basically such as, “Okay, I feel pain and that means I’m in a fearful part of my personality right now, instead of a loving part.” Black and white. Basic and simple. But it’s a whole literacy type of recognition from within. I’m struggling with this quite a bit right now. But I’ve been struggling with a few things today (emotionally). But I’ve been learning some things along with the day, about myself. I’m sure some of this has to do with two commitments which I’m working with in my life. One is to become more truly emotionally aware and the other is to loose weight. I’m having some success with the latter and the evidence is obvious not only by the scale, but by my feeling some emotional distress. I’m not asking for someone to care take me. I’m doing pretty well with it. I connected with a dream today which I had not too long ago–some months, perhaps. I knew it held significance but I could not figure out what that significance was at the time. My childhood religious training was Protestant. In the dream I was walking through some long inner hallways within a church which was representative of one in which I was brought up. I was being shown some things that were behind glass compartments along the walls of the hallways. It had to do with–best put, I think,–religious ritual, which was significantly important. But what was behind the glass was pretty unsightly–unlovely. I can’t tell you what they were because they were just forms. In my wakened state, I could not make the connection—: “Why would the things of religious importance be so unlovely?” Today, I felt I had the answer come to me. The unlovely things were the “forms” of my fears, or fear. It would be of spiritual importance, then, to recognize them. To know them. To be so much aware of them and able to identify them as if they could be actually touched or viewed physically, if you will. One of the contributors to this communication board helped me to come to this as I had read her description of identifying pain in her body and what that process was like for her and how she responded to this with her courage. I am grateful that she shared with all of us and with me. I want to stay in touch with this communication board on a regular basis. This seems like a challenge right now, as I just began a year’s education program for nursing. I’m thinking that I will need to commit some evening time on Friday’s. I don’t want to just put something on here and then not know if someone has responded because I did not get back to the website in a timely manner. I know that this website and communication board are a true blessing and if someone responds to me, then I want to honor their response by recognizing it. I must go now as it is late and I am trying to keep my same sleep schedule. Take care.—–Cindy