I’ve been tagged by Annie at the Transplantable Rose in Austin, Texas, to give reasons I enjoy blogging. She’s a garden expert and I have enjoyed her writings for a few months and learned a great deal from her. She’s one reason I like to blog. Annie’s post on this subject is so eloquent that I don’t think I can say it better than she, but I’ll offer this anyway.
Several weeks ago, I wrote about blogging here. But let me describe it in a different way.
My alarm clock shatters my dreams at 5:20 a.m. on the weekdays and after I groan and drag myself from the bed, let the dogs out to relieve themselves, make the bed (well, not perfectly), I scuffle to the computer and check my e-mail to find who has visited me and I, in turn, view a few blogs to see what everyone else has been up to. But it’s early, with only a few minutes to spare, so I choose to read more and visit later in the day. That’s a great thing about blogging. You visit and read at your own convenience and because of that, there is one less deadline to meet in your hectic day.
During the last few months, I have been graced in getting to know a variety of personalities with different lifestyles and talents. In the United States I have grown fond of bloggers from Maine to Florida, New Jersey to California, and Alaska. There are a few in Canada I couldn’t do without, either. I’ve recently met and admire a blogger in Sao Paulo, Brazil, a blogger in Austria, and another in England. Blogging is good for broadening your horizons and seeing life through the eyes of others who you may never physically embrace, sadly.
During the course of just one day, without blogging, would you ever meet and visit healthcare professionals, writers and published authors, artists, teachers, musicians, retirees, historians, social workers, naturalists, photographers, bunny lovers, cat lovers, dog lovers, nature lovers, and people with distinct personalities, desires, dislikes, and likes? Definitely not! They’re all compassionate people with a desire to share their lives of happiness and sorrow through wonderful words and photographs. All of this comes from the heart and it's SO GOOD. They are soulful friends who laugh and cry with you and for you and there have been times when I wanted to reach through the monitor to hold them…
Several weeks ago, I wrote about blogging here. But let me describe it in a different way.
My alarm clock shatters my dreams at 5:20 a.m. on the weekdays and after I groan and drag myself from the bed, let the dogs out to relieve themselves, make the bed (well, not perfectly), I scuffle to the computer and check my e-mail to find who has visited me and I, in turn, view a few blogs to see what everyone else has been up to. But it’s early, with only a few minutes to spare, so I choose to read more and visit later in the day. That’s a great thing about blogging. You visit and read at your own convenience and because of that, there is one less deadline to meet in your hectic day.
During the last few months, I have been graced in getting to know a variety of personalities with different lifestyles and talents. In the United States I have grown fond of bloggers from Maine to Florida, New Jersey to California, and Alaska. There are a few in Canada I couldn’t do without, either. I’ve recently met and admire a blogger in Sao Paulo, Brazil, a blogger in Austria, and another in England. Blogging is good for broadening your horizons and seeing life through the eyes of others who you may never physically embrace, sadly.
During the course of just one day, without blogging, would you ever meet and visit healthcare professionals, writers and published authors, artists, teachers, musicians, retirees, historians, social workers, naturalists, photographers, bunny lovers, cat lovers, dog lovers, nature lovers, and people with distinct personalities, desires, dislikes, and likes? Definitely not! They’re all compassionate people with a desire to share their lives of happiness and sorrow through wonderful words and photographs. All of this comes from the heart and it's SO GOOD. They are soulful friends who laugh and cry with you and for you and there have been times when I wanted to reach through the monitor to hold them…
Could I run up and down my street or call my family and friends to shout out, “Hey, I have horny toads!” Not really. So I share them with my photographs.
Will anyone come to see why I know they are horny and what they have contributed to life? Not. Shouting from my front porch, “Anyone out there? Look what I found in the pond skimmer! And you know what I did? I took a spatula from the kitchen and scooped them back into the pond!”
Who would be able to see disobedient dogs? Hula Hoops are NOT allowed in the house.
Would anyone share my grief over my twice bitten Canna due to another sub-freeze last night unless they could see it?
I wouldn’t dream of having a phone conversation with an old friend about a weed I saw on my walk yesterday but I’ll show it with the magic of my camera…
Only my birding mentors would understand my glee in finding the Goldfinches have returned.
Who would have the time to come see a Brown Thrasher visit me before it flew away? And who in my neighborhood would understand the meaning of seeing a Lifer? I’m grateful to the Science Chimp for the ID on this one. She’s the best.
Blogging is all about sharing. If I can make someone smile or hold back a few tears now and then, consider it not from me, but through the grace of God.
If you are reading this now, consider yourself tagged! Thanks, Annie, for inviting me to think about the gift of sharing.
Blogging is all about sharing. If I can make someone smile or hold back a few tears now and then, consider it not from me, but through the grace of God.
If you are reading this now, consider yourself tagged! Thanks, Annie, for inviting me to think about the gift of sharing.
21 comments:
So many reasons to blog but you summed it up perfectly! Sharing and horny frogs! I mean, Sharing and wonderful friends! Its great because there is so much information out there to learn from and you are able to communicate wtih these people from around the world!
I feel the same way about sharing good finds on my blog.
Glad to see your toads have been so...... busy!
Thrilled to hear you have received your keyboard and mouse! And as always, great post!
Hugs,
Laurie
You write the best posts Mary! And have the best photos! I love your horny toads! You're so right, things that seem boring or you wouldn't discuss with anyone on the phone get exciting on our blogs - it is so cool!
great post--sums it all up rather perfectly, i think....and love those photos, especially the toads..
That is just about the most perfect explanation for blogging that I've ever read!! Indeed, WHO would care if we could not share it on our blogs? You are just such a ray of sunshine in my daily blog visits Mary! Hugs aplenty to you!
Dear Mary,
I love your toads! A Brown Thasher!
Yes!!!
Only certain people understand the joy of seeing the critters AND being able to photograph them.
I love all of nature and my friends are not enthralled by my weeds or my birds and bugs!
Your reasons for blogging are just like mine, a way to share and connect.
Thank you,
Sherry
Great post! Love it -- horny toads! Chortle! I agree -- blogging is a great way from having your friends and family either lock you up for your obsession with goopy things in the pond filter or start rolling their eyes and walking away quickly when you approach. :)
Wow! new mouse and keyboard arrives and Mary, like the frogs, waxes creatively! Hurray for you. And I 100% agree--who else can we share all these wonders of life with? Who else is listening? or cares as passionately as we do?
Oh, Mary, well said! It's all so true. You remind me that one year I picked my very first tree peony blossom (what a beauty it was) and took it around the neighborhood showing it door-to-door. Like anyone cared! This is so much easier and we know people give a hoot about tree peonies and such.
Of course to share these lovelies, a good camera is essential. How do you get such nice close-ups of your birds? Do you have a digital with a long lens or just a good zoom? I obviously don't!
Mon@rch, I learn a lot from you! It's great.
Laura, today the toads are hidden. We are freezing here...
Laurie, I was glad to have the mouse & keyboard, but guess what? They both stopped working suddenly. I guess I'll be calling DELL HELL again on Monday.
Pam, many people appreciate nature but many more people don't give a hoot. It's a shame.
Mary, thanks for visiting. I love your blog near the ocean.
Jayne, you are a dear person and have the best bird photos! I'm especially impressed with that Chickadee-dee-dee!
Sherry, thanks for stopping by. YOU have a wonderful blog - I'll visiting often. Great birds!
Liza, LOL! My neighbor looks at me like I have three heads when she hears I went pond swimming to adjust some rocks and clean it...
Donna, I have noticed that most people aren't as observant or passionate. They are just too busy to care. My mouse and keyboard are on the blink again! Argggh!
Lost Roses, I laughed about your door-to-door excitement! I don't have one of those fancy long lenses. It's a very simple camera with a good zoom. A complicated camera would slow me down :o)
Mary, I got a little teary reading this. Doggone it. That's got to be one of the most eloquent, funny explanations as to why we 'hang out' in cyber space the way we do.
Pond skimmer contents and disobedient dogs. You're the best.
"blogging is all about sharing..." and I might add, learning. Reading about the day to day adventures of people around the continent and around the world is so much better than reading news headlines. Your enthusiasm for life is wonderful, Mary. You are the socialite of the blogosphere!
ruth
Perfect post. That's all.
I'm so glad I found you, Mary!
Cathy, you are the best, too! I think you know where I'm coming from...
Ruth, you mentioned "learning and education" and that is exactly what we get from you. You are a wonderful source of information that is valuable. I look forward to it every day.
Susan, I am glad I found you, too! I remember the day you put me on your blog roll and I was so honored.
I agree that the best thing about blogging is the exposure to those who think differently, live in different places and live in different ways.
I've learned vast amounts from reading other people's blogs. :)
Peace,
~Chani
Hi Mary,
I'm glad you enjoyed the tag and you made a great post out of it. I especially liked the idea that any one day could be so full of interesting encounters... that is so true!
Please feel free to grab me and say "look what I found in the pond skimmer", because I'll really want to know what it is. And then we can both bop over to see Lost Roses' tree peony blossom ;-)
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
Yes, yes, yes. Sharing stuff most of the people we actually spend our lives with wouldn't understand or want to know. We're part of a community that understands what's so cool about nature--a curious bunch, that knows all the best things in life are free, and often very small and seemingly insignificant. Lovely post.
Great post about blogging! Goldfinches! We haven't seen them yet here in northern NC - our thistle feeders are untouched so far. Glad to hear they are on the way. We did see our first hummingbird of the season today, though. He flew in, looked for the sugar-water feeder that I've talked about putting up for days, but hadn't gotten around to yet. Now the feeders are up, but I haven't seen him visit again.
Chani, blogging does open your eyes much better than watching the news...
Annie, I'm glad I found people like you who share interest in the outdoors. It would be nice if everyone had that common desire.
Julie, yes, it's all free. Nutures the body and mind.
Susan, we've had goldfinches all winter but they left me for two weeks ??? YOU have hummingbirds? I'm impressed and hopeful now. I'll hang the feeders ASAP!
Wow--that's just how I feel. I can tell things to my blogging friends that I don't tell anyone else, that no one else would appreciate.
Great post.
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