It seems like at least five times a day somebody on Facebook is linking to somebody's else's blog post. Every so often I'll go in and read these posts and I almost always come away feeling like "why bother?" Why should I bother blogging when there are women out there who are so much wiser or funnier or more insightful and much better writers. I know, this isn't a contest and I am the last person on the planet to want to compete. I hate competition with a passion, perhaps from my years of always coming in last, but anyway, I sometimes wonder if it is worth the effort.
These blogger women seem so young and beautiful and talented and they all have like a gazillion kids and homeschool and have big gardens (organic, of course) and bake their own bread and, quite possibly, even grind their own wheat. They cook and love to do it and post recipes. They tell stories of great spiritual insights gained when conversing theology with a 4 year-old in a beautiful hand-smocked dress. They seem to have animals, too. They are all so perky, with their latte infused humor and Pinterest sense of style. Their children are gorgeous chore-loving cherubs, their husbands handsome and strapping, and their hormones mostly intact. Why write when there is already so much better stuff out there?
I do have things that come to mind. And friends keep encouraging me to write. But there are so many limitations. Already the hapless victims of my Facebook charades, two of my offspring do not want to be mentioned in any way, shape or form in a Facebook status, much less an emotion-laden blog. I must respect that. I must respect them. They did not sign up to have their life on cyber display, even if only 68 people ever view that particular post. I could go into greater detail with the struggles I had growing up but there I must tiptoe along a fine line between honesty and honoring the parents that brought me into this world. It's just so much more complicated than I thought it would be.
Life is messy. That is what I know. And, from what I hear, you are to write what you know. At least that's how it seems to work best for most people. But how do I write about messy and who on earth would want to read it? I am totally stumped.
Amen, sista! Just write about the mess. That's what I do! I don't know about other people, but I like knowing that I'm not the only one who is a big freaked out mess...!
ReplyDeletePlease write about messy. Messy is real. Having it all together... well, either they're faking it, or they haven't had a catastrophe hit them yet. In any case, it's not really about real life, now is it? No matter how much you share about a particular event, it's still encouraging to read. Reading something that's honest and true makes me want to write stuff that's honest and true, even if it's also messy. :)
ReplyDeleteI read them all. I figure kids for sure will be talking about how our lives influenced their story....why not allow us to speak/write how God uses them in the process of our redemption? Marriage & kids are God's megaphone to my dull ears
ReplyDeleteI love your blog. Please keep writing.
ReplyDeleteI was just about to write something exactly like this! I just found your blog today, but already it's in the category of someone else saying what I want to say, but better. Since this was posted almost a whole year ago, have you had time to figure it all out? :-)
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