On blogging...
I had a conversation with two much beloved people on blogging last night. Neither of them blog but one of them does read a few. It was interesting to get a different perspective from my own. I love to read and write posts on blogs. They don't like it. They do not like that thoughts and struggles are shared online with total strangers. They don't like that sometimes family is left out of the loop. They believe others are hurt unintentionally and that is a big deal.
There is a transparency that I just crave-from myself and others-through blogging. However, it is a little one-sided. There are people out there who are reading my blog and making judgements about me that may have never met me. There may also be people who know me well that read my blog and discover a part of my personality that they never knew before. This may improve or damage our relationship. I hope I have not hurt anyone through blogging. It has always been my intention to be open and honest but also for this to serve as a journal. Someday, I want my children to read this and know that I struggled with all of the same things I know they will struggle with some day. I hope I inspire them to keep chugging on and look for God in all things. I hope I do that with anyone else that reads as well.
What are your thoughts on blogging? My blogging?
4 comments:
My extended family likes my blog... they know much more about what is going on in our lives now than they ever did before. It also allows me to keep up with distant friends with whom I rarely communicated before. Now we can stay in touch, make quick comments, stay connected. Reading friends' blogs has also helped me to get to know people I see all the time much better.
I think you have to be careful any time you are blogging about other people, even when you are making generalizations like "my church". I try to never share things that would embarrass or appear to be critical of my family or friends, so that tempers the way I write about my marriage, my personal struggles, discpline issues, etc. It might seem less "real", but I am doing it to honor my family, so the trade-off is worth it to me.
I keep my blog mostly as a journal, but it's also a hobby, so I include lots of memes and other stuff that no one else really cares about besides me. Having a "readership", however small, keeps me accountable to my journaling goals, whereas a personal notebook would probably get shoved into a drawer and forgotten. I think blogging is a great thing, as long as you use common sense and use it to honor your "real-life" relationships.
I love blogging. For me, it is a journal that I hope my children will cherish one day. I love writing down all the "simple" daily stories about our lives. I also have friends that don't "get it" either but it has been a huge blessing for me. Yes, there is a chance that some people aren't being "real" but that is just a risk. For people that feel out of the loop, I just think why can't they just read it too? I can write things so much easier than I can say them face to face.
Just my opinion!
I didn't read Sandy's whole comment before I wrote my own.
Sandy-I hope what I wrote about being "real" didn't offend you! I am like you in that I try to remember that ANYONE can read my blog so I try not to write about specific things that could be harmful. We have had a "relationship/friendship issue" among some girls at church lately that I've longed to be able to write about. I haven't though because of hurt feelings it may have caused. I've had to find another outlet for that and that's been okay. I prefer to keep my blog a little "lighter" anyway.
People who are too easily offended should probably not be in the blogosphere... can I have an "amen" to that, anyone? :-)
No offense taken, Jacinda!
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