from the mom
My brother and husband were the first bloggers I knew. I thought their blogs were witty and inspiring. I found myself thinking of all the things I would blog about, until one day, I succumbed. And then they both quit blogging. Why do I go on?
Blogs have peaked, I read. 200 million people have given up blogging. And, I will admit, my own blog has been a little tired lately. Too much mundane, too little insight. My posts are less frequent, less readable. Why do I go on?
I have kept a journal since I could form letters. I started my diary before I knew cursive. The entries are hilariously boring. "Today I played with Lisa. We had tacos for dinner." (We had tacos A LOT.) But faithfully, I have kept a journal ever since. I might miss a week or two, but you would be hard-pressed to find any month over the last 30 (GASP!) years that didn't have at least one entry. WHY do I go on?
My friends, family, teachers have often suggested I should be a writer. I have published a few poems here and there, a story, a few letters-to-the-editor. But I don't like the rules of publishing: Tell me what you will say and then I will commission you to say it. I don't know what I will say until I say it and I don't want to say it if you are not going to publish it. So there. So why do I go on?
Because I can start a blog post having absolutely no idea where I am headed with it and it is ok. I can start a post and not finish it. Then or ever. I can tell you with a title I'm headed one place and then take a major turn and no one cancels my contract. I can write if I feel like it. I don't have to write when I don't feel like it. Most of the time I feel like it.
So for the many people who blogged like they kept that journal that one year in junior high, sayonara. It was nice reading you. But a lot of us will be blogging long after it is trendy.
7 comments:
I abandoned my junior high journal after a few months. (Although it did have some exciting episodes, like the guys running through our woods who claimed they were having a fight with drug dealers.)
I don't see myself ever dropping blogging. It has what journals lack: an audience. And what "real" writing lacks: total flexibility.
Happy Birthday!
Yay blogging! Yay not giving up blogging! I've kept a journal sporadically throughout the years, but my reason for not keeping it up is that I can't write short entries, even when there's nothing to write about. (The fact that my blog posts are short enough to be readable is a triumph of effort.)Blogging has been a great substitute.
Mostly, though, it's a social connection. When y'all came out last weekend, we found that we didn't have to spend our precious couple of hours talking frantically to catch up, but could eat a leisurely lunch and chat. I hope you never give up blogging.
-- SJ
I still attempt to keep a journal. I started when I was 8 1/2 years old and wrote almost every day or at least every weeek until I was 22. Somewhere around then I started only writing every month or so, I was pretty busy... and then when I started my blog my journal entries became once every few months when I had something I wanted to say... but not to the whole world. I suppose if I ever quit blogging I'll go back to my journals.
I love this! I feel the same way. I've always loved to write and have always kept a journal about stupid stuff, important stuff, funny stuff, whatever. So, blogs are great for people like that.
Keep blogging Rachelle--regardless of how frequent, we'll always be checking it and looking forward to commentary and updates!
I concur with you & the others... I'll keep doing it... you keep doing it :)
I LOVE reading your blog. You make me laugh, think, be encouraged, and feel more educated - forget Nintendo's Brain Age.. I like reading rlr's blog. :)
Post a Comment