Wednesday 20 August 2008

Blogs vs. Life

A dear blog friend sent me an email yesterday
and apologised for not commenting on my blog recently.
Her life has taken her away from blogging for a while.

I was really touched by this.
I have no expectations of my blog friends
- each time one of you takes time in a busy day
to read this blog I am surprised and delighted
- each time you leave a comment
it makes me smile and wish that
we could continue the conversation.
Thank you all for contributing to this blog
and making it such a wonderful part of my life.

I wrote back that it is so important to realise
that blogs follow life and not vice versa.
Your blog is your own space...
you can use it in whatever way gives you pleasure.
You have no obligation to write, read or comment;
it should be a hobby not a chore.
It is living life that is important.

There may be times in the months ahead
when I am not able to write so regularly
or to visit your blogs and enjoy your writing.
On those days please know
that I will still be thinking of you all.

When I first started reading blogs
I came across a lady called Barbs who lived in Texas(?)
She had a little white dog
and one daughter who had just got married
and another one who was having a baby.
I used to drop by regularly
and I admired her optimistic attitude.
She also published recipes
which were so far outside my cooking experience
that it was quite educational.

And then I lost the link...
but I often wonder how she is getting on.

And lo!
MrM saves the day - yet again!
A Chelsea Morning
and Barbs is doing just fine...
which is a relief.

20 comments:

blackbird said...

That makes me a little crazy, when I lose track of a particular blogger.
I may be a little out of touch soon, too - as you can imagine.

Mary said...

I think there are a few of us who are letting the blogging slip a little whilst we focus hard on life!

I always think of you too!

Fairlie - www.feetonforeignlands.com said...

I think we can all take something from this post. Sometimes I joke that life is what happens when you run out of blog posts, but you are so right, blogs follow life and not the other way around. Sometimes we get so caught up in life, its nice to know that we can drop in and out of blogland at will.

Hope you track down Barbs.

RW said...

As life goes. I am grateful our lives touched in this small way.

kristina said...

All so beautifully said and so true.

I do have to remind myself every now and then that the blog for is fun. It's not an obligation. And then I breathe a big sigh of relief and start having fun again!

And like you, I think it's the comments and meeting the wonderful people behind them that makes it all so rewarding.

K x

Gina said...

As always, beautifully and eloquently put. It can be easy to lose perspective about blogging.

walter and me said...

A timely reminder to enjoy your blog and not feel obligated....life and living comes first.

trash said...

Great summary, thanks.

dragonfly said...

You are so right. The last few weeks have been a prime example of exactly this for me, but my blogging friends have never been far from my thoughts...

Anonymous said...

Sometimes I go out and have a life just so that I will have something interesting to blog!

that's a good thing though.

Five weeks and we'll chat in person. I'm looking forward to that.

Anonymous said...

would this be the person you are looking for

http://b-nn.com/2008/06/chelsea-is-her-dog-yall/

handy thing Google - got it on the first attempt

Anonymous said...

Oh ALice, you are so clever to be able to say such things that are important to us all and use such fine words.

I agree with everything you've said re keeping the blog/life balance. I had to remind myself of this at the weekend when I realised all photos I'd taken of the children were of their feet because I don't put their faces on my blog. I had to remind myself why I was taking photos in the first place :: not just to blog about, but to preserve the moment for future generations of our family. Who most likely would want to see faces.
Thanks for making me think, and thanks for your words of wisdom, i love visiting with you
xxxx

Anonymous said...

I find it hard to balance my blogging and life sometimes. I just love all the kind words I get and love reading everyone elses experiences. It is like opening little gifts everyday. You never know what will be in the box.

jordi said...

You hit on a big truth, as usual! When I was new to the blogland I was too shy to comment. Now I try to do it even when I think the blogger "has it too much together to care what I say" because I realize what pleasure I get when someone that I do not know comments on mine.. how delightful to know that things DO resonate through the universe.

silverpebble said...

These are really useful thoughts for me as I'm quite new to blogging. At the moment it's a few minutes here and there away from the daily routine - a break - but I could see how it could become too engrossing and take up too much time. Thanks for such thought-provoking words.

driftwood said...

beautifully written Alice, you always manage to put everything into perspective.
and I know what Lucy means about childrens feet photos, I took some of those too last week, and then thought why don't I just take normal photos, which I might want to keep, and then edit them to cut out the childrens faces if I want to blog them.......

Margaret said...

So true! I find blogging a place to be free and creative. It shouldn't be a chore or an obligation.

I'm forever losing great blogs. I wish I would just subscribe every time I run across a good one! It really is sad when you lose track of a beautiful blog.

ginny said...

well said as usual Alice. you are such a wise woman.
best wishes
ginny xx

Cathy {tinniegirl} said...

What a lovely warm post. I'm so happy that I found it today. It was just what I needed. I've had your blog saved on my favourites list for ages and just got around to a proper visit today. Serendipity.

Melanie Gray Augustin said...

That is a beautiful post! I sometimes feel quite guilty when I neglect my blogging friends, but lovely to know that blogging friends are just like non-blogging friends, they understand when life gets in the way of things for a while.