what to do about this blog. I have enjoyed writing and posting my thoughts on it, I've enjoyed (and continue to enjoy) the friends I've made here, and don't want to close it down entirely. But...
I rarely post more than once a week these days and even then, it's usually the sermon or some other related bit of writing. I have fewer flashes of inspiration that just have to be expressed in writing. And these days, in my 8th year of ministry with one congregation, I have a lot of situations and challenges on my plate that should not be aired publicly.
Election season is always a time of political angst and upwelling of opinion and fear-based political ads. I dislike it intensely and have already pretty well picked out my candidates and issues. But I'm not going to post them. I don't want to argue about them with readers who might be making the same decisions but with different candidates and different opinions about issues. I'm sick of all that.
I've felt I've served as a long distance mentor for a few seminary students and that's been very rewarding. But several of those folks are beyond the beginner stage and, in fact, I have noticed that I'm learning from them! (Though I haven't yet shaved my head.) A few folks from my congregation read the blog, but they don't need to do that to know what's going on in my life or what I'm thinking!
I hate to complain about my physical health (which is actually quite good, so don't worry, FS), even when it takes a chunk of my time to care for it or fix it or worry about this pain or that. It's not a fit topic for a blog post, IMHO.
And Facebook gives me a place to post little day to day stuff, repost great stuff I've seen on others' FB updates, and generally keep track of others and let them keep track of me. I spend as much time on FB now as I used to spend on blog posts. I spend about 5 minutes on FB every hour---what's that, an hour every 12 hours? Not too bad and I get to see what all my cronies are doing out there in UU land. But not everyone I know is on Facebook---some are only reachable through blog posts.
So it's a dilemma. I'm definitely not going to shut down Ms. Kitty's but for now you're probably mostly going to get sermons and that sort of thing. Well, except for that one situation recently that might be helpful to seminarians about dealing with difficult congregants.... we'll see if that one can be made helpful (yet kept confidential) for those who have yet to confront such a difficulty.
14 comments:
Ms. K, I'll still keep reading your blog whether you post every day or once in a blue moon. Your words always teach me something, and it seems they do so at just the right time.
I'm not on FB for a lot of reasons, but I hope you'll still stop in at E&P from time to time. Who knows what craziness I'll be writing about next? :-P
Thanks, Miss K, and I check your blog out every day---you are one of those friends I've made in this way.
Quality is always preferable to quantity, and I've no doubt that you'll keep leaning more to the former than the latter.
I learn so much from you. Your sermons, your essays, your musings. Thank you for being a mentor and teacher.
I always like reading your sermons.
I face a similar issue with my blog. Not with ministry, of course, but work, elections, workload, etc.
Thanks, Desmond and LE, you are encouraging me with your kind words.
RSS feeder will let us know when something new is posted. And how else can we know what the Cats are up to?
Thanks, Ms T. and SCU. That reminds me, I haven't told you about Max's latest escapades. Maybe it would work to keep a list of possible topics and refer to it periodically.
I keep up with your blog through UUpdateds, but I'll try to friend you on FB as well so I can keep up with you there. I enjoy your own unique perspective and this is one seminarian who learns from you!
Gosh, my friends, you are inspiring and encouraging me! Thanks so much, everyone. This wasn't intended to be a "fishing expedition" and I very much appreciate all your kind comments.
I don't want to argue about them with readers who might be making the same decisions but with different candidates and different opinions about issues. I'm sick of all that.
That would be me, I'm afraid. I'm sorry; I'll try not to argue with you so much. I do enjoy reading your blog, even when I bite my tongue.
LOL Rev Kit! I have the same feelings about my blog right now. I have so much to do in my life that I'm hoping that I can provide quality over quantity, though sometimes I can't really do either. :-P Even if you're just printing a sermon once a week, that's great. Your sermons are the most un-sermony things I've ever read--do what you can and leave the rest, says I!
I think blogs have lifespans (my most recent blog has had a very slow start -- both in terms of my frequency of posts and in terms of responses -- and I am trying to figure out what to do with it myself, even though it is fairly new). I've really enjoyed your blog over the years, but I completely understand if you take a break from active blogging and stick to posting sermons for a while. There will be another day for the rest.
@Joel----well, you offer a lot of interesting opinions but I rarely argue with you; I leave that up to others. Desmond is particularly good at it, IMHO.
@Pixie and Masasa----thanks for the support and thoughts.
One consequence of this post is that all of a sudden I've thought of several things I could blog about! So I will be doing that, as I love to put my thoughts out there and see what you all think. I don't particularly care about how many people read the blog but I do care about the writing of it. I want it to be interesting and not trite.
Post a Comment