Words Are The Life/Death Of A Blogger

I stumbled across The Death Of A Blogger and was dismayed by what I found there because it felt like wandering into the past was no different than wandering around the present.

But I took a moment to think about what I saw and to ask myself about what I felt and I remembered this has been a journey through along the long and winding road.

And journeys that do not go along straight lines do not lend themselves to measurement, at least not the quick and easy kind such as you might find on your automobile’s odometer.

You can’t look backwards and see where you have been nor can you see far enough past the clouds to know how far you have to go.

It is a spiral staircase you walk and sometimes that means you feel like you are moving backwards even when you might be pushing ahead.

Words are the death and the lifeblood of a blogger and sometimes I forget to remind myself of the importance of remembering this.

Jack, No One Understands You

Those were the words in the email and the comment.

They were part of a bigger push by someone who said they didn’t like my writing and wondered why I would “pollute the world” with my words.

I don’t remember when I received that particular note any more than I remember the dates and times I received some of the other compliments that have come courtesy of blogging.

Some of those comments made me laugh because they were ridiculous and some of them made me shake my head in disbelief or anger.

I have spent a good part of my life feeling like I was on the outside looking in so telling me no one understands me isn’t something that I’ll argue with.

It is not because I agree or disagree but because I don’t care what most people think. We are all a little out there and though it would be nice to be the cool sneetch with the star everywhere I go that is not how life works.

We are all a little out there and though it would be nice to be the cool sneetch with the star everywhere I go that is not how life works.

But the part that really makes me smile is the idea that someone thinks I’ll quit because they say no one understands me.

If anything it demonstrates they don’t understand me or recognize I take pride in marching to the beat of a drummer who has no rhythm.

It has taken a long time to become this guy and I am not about to cry because some nameless, faceless troll says something.

Twelve Years Of Blogging

I haven’t begun working on my blogiversary post but I have thought about it a little bit.

Thought a bit about what I have learned and what I want to share. Thought about how many blogs I have seen come and go and how I am still here.

I take pride in that. It may not be meaningful or significant to others but it works for me and that is the kind of lesson I want my children to learn.

Part of the journey is to focus on figuring out what soothes our soul and feeds our heart. It is figuring out what brings us joy and doing what we can to drink deeply out of that bottle as frequently and as often as we can.

I want them to recognize that we are all different and that it is ok to have different interests/focus than our friends and family.

If you are not hurting yourself or others…go for it.

Feed your heart. Feed your soul.

That is an integral part of what keeps you/us alive.

“Soul meets soul on lovers lips.”― Percy Bysshe Shelley

If you have never kissed another and forgotten where your lips start and theirs end you have never really kissed another.

I strongly urge you to rectify that one day…or another.

I can tell you one kiss and nothing was ever the same but whether it wrecked or created me, well that is not for you and I to discuss.

The Two Most Important Lessons

You must figure out how to have fun and you must figure out how to write without fear.

Remove doubt and uncertainty about whether your posts will be loved and appreciated and just write. Put pen to paper, finger to keyboard and punch out the posts.

You miss every shot you don’t take and lose every opportunity you don’t make for yourself. I know it sounds like goofy new age stuff but it is really not.

No one knows who is going to come along and read their words or how those words will impact them.

Some of the best stuff I have ever written has been ignored and skipped over. And some of the weakest words I have ever laid down have been described as amazing.

You can’t say and you don’t know how it will go so you need to just write.

Storyteller and Storytelling

When my kids ask me who I am trying to become I say a storyteller whose life is about storytelling.

And then I tell them to be ok with walking their own winding road and understanding they don’t have to find their passion today, tomorrow or next week.

I tell them it might take some time to discover it and that life is about experiments and journeys.

Kind of funny to hear me say that because the guy who wrote about the death of a blogger would have called it bullshit and the man I am today, well he doesn’t.

That is because he has lived and learned more than he ever could have imagined. Eight years later I can say that I feel like my life was a jigsaw puzzle that was pulled apart and thrown around.

But the pieces that used to fit don’t so part of the journey is finding new ones that do.

Originally published at www.thejackb.com on April 25, 2016.