ANOTHER YEAR OF BLOGGING
Well, another year of blogging just sailed by and I'm pausing for a moment to look back and to appreciate all that blogging brings into my life. 11 years ago when I first Googled "how to start a blog" I never imagined what a blessing it would be to have my little spot on the interwebs.
I'm not even sure what I was hoping to accomplish by starting this journey, but I know I never expected to be here so many years later, and with so many benefits that have come my way...
WHERE WOULD I BE WITHOUT A BLOG?
When I stop and look at what blogging has brought my way, here's just a few off the top of my head:
- Somewhere to share my journey and to receive thoughtful comments in return.
- So many connections over the years.
- Inspiration and encouragement to live Midlife my way, and to live it well.
- Opportunities to be published in magazines, a newspaper article, and on other blogs.
- Interviews on a variety of podcasts.
- A small, but much appreciated hobby income from collaborations.
- A way to keep my computer skills honed while figuring out new challenges.
FROM EARLY 50'S TO MID 60'S
Blogging has taken me from my early 50's through to my mid 60's and it's been integral in keeping me positive and encouraged during this phase of my life. I do remember thinking that life looked pretty dull and gray when I started. I was in a job that I was bored with, our kids had left home and were established in their own lives, my husband and I had ridden out a major hiccup in our marriage, and there just didn't seem to be a lot of joy or light to look forward to.
What blogging did was connect me into a network of bright, smart, engaging women (and a bloke or two) who were my age and who were doing Midlife really well. They were all so different, but they were figuring stuff out and the more I wrote and connected, the more I found myself being proactive and embracing this second half of life, and I've never looked back.
MAKING THE MOST OF MIDLIFE
Since starting this blog I quit that boring job, started another, went down a major rabbit hole with a very difficult work colleague, quit that job, pulled myself back together, decided to retire, decided to un-retire, and then decided to re-retire.
Along the way I figured out who I am, I learned about boundaries, to stop trying to be all things to all people, to own my small space in this world, and to live life in a way that feels authentic and joyful. I've been encouraged by others, and in turn I've cheered others on. I'd like to think that sharing my story has been helpful - and I've had plenty of comments and emails with a "me too" in them - where we walk the same path and find our way through.
When you stand and share your story in an empowering way, your story will heal you, and your story will heal somebody else.
Iyanla Vanzant
THERE'S ALWAYS MORE AHEAD
As each year draws to a close, I look back at other bloggers who've closed their blogs down and moved on, and I start wondering if I'm done with blogging too. I wonder if I've said all I needed to say, written all there is to write, and if I'm done. Each time that happens I say to my husband "I think I'm going to stop blogging because I think I'm done" and he tells me "you say that every year, and yet here you still are" and he's right. There always seems to be something that catches my interest that I want to explore more, there's always thoughts whizzing around in my head that find their way here, and there's always something new to learn and to share.
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