Poet and novelist Cassie Premo Steele leads journaling workshops at Congaree National Park every meteorological season — three month periods based on temperature cycles. For two hours, individuals in the workshop trek through the park's green brilliance, using pen and pad to escape from the the stress of their daily lives.
Following the publication of her 2015 book, "Earth Joy Writing", Steele pitched the workshop to the park's administration. Coincidentally, Congaree National Park was developing the Forest Wellness Program, an initiative started by the park to create and promote free, nature-based activities. The program would encompass Steele's journaling workshops and a monthly yoga class in 2019.
Four times a year, participants arrive at the Harry Hampton Visitor Center, where they meet Steele and get a free journal with a pen. Some attendees are new but many are regulars.
An average workshop begins outside Congaree National Park's visitor center. After walking to the program's first stop, a giant peach tree on the boardwalk, attendees are given a journaling prompt and an excerpt from Steele's writing to use as inspiration.
Steele never requires guests to share their journaling, a practice she hopes will increase its therapeutic effects.
Much of the journaling done during the program is nature-based, with most prompts taken directly from Steele's writing. While journaling is the focal point of the workshop, guests also participate in a two-mile hike while they write and even do meditative activities, such as guided breathing exercises.
"It gives people the opportunity to reflect on and come to terms with things that they may have been anxious about or worried about or sad about," Steele said.
As the group progresses along Congaree National Park's boardwalk, its members are able to slowly bond and be vulnerable, said Michelle Bizzell. Bizzell, the administrator and coordinator of the Forest Wellness Program has volunteered at the national park since 2018.
"I can feel safe writing whatever I feel about it because we've stopped multiple times. We've talked, you've shared your writing, Cassie, that is published, it is out in the world, and not ever asked me to share anything," said Bizzell. "It is like taking my brain out and washing it and putting it back in my head."
After the final stop, attendees will gather together and share one word that encapsulates their experience.
Outside of the reflective nature of the workshop, Steele wants participants to increase their connection and trust with the natural world.
"There's just such a sense of wisdom you get from seeing these old-growth trees and understanding how Congaree is a very unique biosphere region, and there's something about the ancient history of that and the survival of that that I think we can learn from as humans," Steele said.
Jan Smoak, Assistant Dean for Awards and Enrollment at South Carolina Honors College, is one of Steele's longtime friends who leads the aforementioned yoga program at Congaree National Park.
"The overall essence of being a participant in that program is that it forces you to slow down, to appreciate being outdoors, to pay attention to things that maybe on a regular hike you would have missed," Smoak said.
Steele first moved to Columbia to attend the University of South Carolina's Graduate School. During this period, she quickly fell in love with the state and its biodiversity.
"I think South Carolina's natural beauty is really under appreciated. It's got a lot of endangered species that aren't found anywhere," Steele said. "We've got a lot of waterways and wetlands and rivers that really allow a diversity of life to thrive."
Steele's appreciation for the outside world stems from a love for ecology and the effects of nature on mental health.
"We don't realize how stressful it is to be in traffic or be indoors or be in artificial lighting, and so just the experience of having two hours in very deep, forested nature is incredibly calming," Steele said.
The mindfulness and peace provided by nature has led to some of Steele's most memorable moments at Congaree National Park.
"As we were sitting there, a barred owl came incredibly close ... then started to sing to us," Steele said. "The woman next to me became overwhelmed and said, 'He trusts us, he trusts us. He's letting us know he trusts us.'"
The next journaling workshop held by Steele will take place on Nov. 23 between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. and registration opened on Oct. 22. For those who would like to participate in future workshops, the link to register can be found on Steele's website or they can sign up directly on Eventbrite.com.