Naming the Heart

ATLAS HEART | A COLLECTION OF HEARTS SHADOWED, GILDED AND FREE

I began the daily ritual of naming my heart as a way of coping with the world I had abruptly stepped into as a single woman and mother of four young daughters. The practice became a bread crumb trail of memory, maps and pathways of thought and feeling. Ongoing stress left my brain in a deep fog and having these notes to go back to allowed me to recall days, moments and feelings that may have otherwise been lost to me. It was a way for me to focus and become more aware instead of drifting as I was. Naming the heart became a personal healing modality that allowed me to acknowledge the feelings, release them to paper, then set it aside.

Today I now hold in my hands a small printed book to tuck away on the shelves. This book contains the private collection of journal entires from the first year I was alone. Now that I'm well on the other side of that year I feel ready to breathe again.

All of my love and deepest gratitude,

Ashley