Rising
Dec 5th, 2008 by spaceagesage
I turn 49 soon — this month actually. I’ve been blogging since last February, and this is my 184th post.
Why does this matter?
Because sunrises always come every day to remind us of two things:
1) Some things are constant
2) Some things are not
For me this means I’m getting old (the constant), but I’m not going to go quietly (the not-so-constant).
The last month or so, I’d hit a wall with writing posts. Not because I can’t write them, but because I didn’t like what I was writing. It became clear to me that:
- I had matured enough as a blogger to feel OK with changing things up
- I needed a new direction, but not a new topic
- I wanted to reconnect with more passionate issues
And so I come to a crossroads. I’m not quite sure where it will go:
- I do know that tackling the stickier topics of Christianity and spirituality has a certain draw for me.
- I know that I may have to shut down comments over such topics because I refuse to give a forum to hate-mongers.
- I know that this quote from Mahatma Gandhi is too true: “I like your Christ; I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”
Could get interesting around here, eh?
Photo credit: speech path girl
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Oooooh, I can’t wait to see what comes next! I’ve had the same sort of issue with my writing – not sure if I really want to expose myself and just write what I want; but on the other hand, I am running out of things to say that are witty and mundane (my trademark). Maybe you could moderate comments instead of closing them completely – I think where you’re going with this might produce some really good conversations!
Sure sounds interesting. 🙂
Whatever you decide, I’m looking forward to reading it.
Closing comments is not a bad solution.
Hi Lori: I think trolls mostly hang around the larger blogs. But you of course you should do what feels right for you. The new direction your headed in sounds interesting 🙂
I don’t know what your goals are for blogging, but desire has to be among the most important things — you just can’t go on creating valuable posts if blogging becomes a “chore.”
Well, at least it won’t be the kind of blog I’d read. 😉
I very much resonate with what you’re pondering regarding Christian faith. I sometimes ask the same questions — do I want to venture there? So I am definitely curious to see what you’ll say on it.
ari
Hi Annie,
Thanks for your input! As a believer and follower of Christ who was suckered by a cult and seen a lot of church abuse, I could probably stir both sides of the issue on religion because I have a well-developed BS detector now.
Hi Vered,
Thanks Vered! I’m working on letting go instead of controlling — as in shutting down comments — but I think there is also a balance in not allowing a troll party or even getting to wrapped up in what I could call scripture smackdown downward spiral.
Hi Marelisa,
That’s true, but who knows what some of my own relatives might say? Ha!
Hi Ari,
I’m not sure blogging was a chore as much as life was a chore at the time. We all have our ups and downs. I’m working on Rising now.
Good for you! I like comments, but I can see that if you’re exploring your own ideas it might be better not to have to engage in a conversation for a while. You can trust that your loyal readers will be visiting anyway. If something touches our hearts and stirs us up then we can write on our own blogs.
At any rate, thanks for sharing your explorations.
I say write what you are passionate about. You might lose some existing readers, but you will gain new ones. Creativity should never be a chore! Go for it!
I am not Christian, but I like what Ghandi said about liking Christ but not Christians. The base message from most religions is the same: play nice! Okay, maybe it’s a bit more complex than that. But it really shouldn’t matter which spiritual journey we take as long as it helps us be the best human beings we possibly can be.
Your posts are already spiritual, Lori, so there probably won’t be as big a change as you think. Just more focus.
As for shutting down comments, remember this is your blog. You can keep comments and delete ones you don’t want posted. That is your right.
Hi Lori. Amazing photograph! I certainly look forward to reading what you have up your sleeve. 🙂 Perhaps it’s time to add another category to your archives huh?
Hi Jean,
Thank you for the comment about my loyal readers! You folks really are the best!
Hi Urban Panther,
Thanks for the feedback and kind words!
Guess I’ll keep comments open and watch over them carefully.
Hi Davina,
The photo was taken by my photo friend, I think it Colorado Springs.
Actually, I really need to make a better archive!
That Gandhi quote is fantastic. Osho, aka Rajneesh was another one who kept this as his theme. All the founders of the various religions were lovable but alas, the moment their messages got converted into religions, they became perverse!
I am writing about a landmark in my blog tonight. Do feel free to visit and comment.
I think that a blog should be fluid (a writer should be able to change his/her content as he/she sees fit). I think that cool thing is that you’re involving your readers in the process (we have a way of appreciating that).
And if you decide to close comments, no biggy. So long as you do open it up sometimes 🙂
Hi rummuser,
I did visit your site — congrats!
Hi Ricardo,
Thanks for the feedback. Fluidity and flexibility are always better than stagnation!