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God is great, life is good and people are crazy

That title might sound familiar if you are a country music fan.  Sitting here in the quiet of my sister-in-law's home my mind is wondering - more accurately, wandering.  I don't usually have enough time to just sit and think.  It's probably a good thing.  When I have enough time to think it usually ends up being like a super-charged rollercoaster ride.  My thoughts race from one extreme to another, one topic to another and usually with no logical sequence.  On this particular morning, I have the time to contemplate my blog.  The purpose, the future and the ideas of blogging (my blogging not the world's).  When I made the remark yesterday that I was completely bored he said this is a great time to work on your blog.  Why hadn't I thought of that?  Well, really I had but I also thought it would be a great time for reading.  Or sleeping.  But I really wasn't tired - I sleep very well at night and rarely need a nap - and the books I chose to bring are the type I usually bring with me - Seasons of a Mother's Heart, Life Interrupted and The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome.  Do you detect a hint of schizophrenia?  Not yet, just wait.  These are all great books and I am very blessed to have access to them.  I have bookshelves on every level of my home loaded with these types of books and many, many others.  Many, many, many others.  You probably know the type.  You may be the type.  But the truth is that yesterday what I really would have enjoyed reading was some twaddle.  Yep, I said twaddle.  Because I homeschool and my deep desire is to fully implement a Charlotte Mason style education for my students it's tough for me to admit that I can appreciate some good twaddle.  But appreciate it I can.  Once upon a time while witnessing my daughters' obsession with books that should probably remain unnamed here, I was convinced to try reading them myself.  It was the first time I had picked up a book to read just for fun in I can't even remember how long.  They were also the first books I couldn't bare to put down until I was done and then pick up the next in the series.  For about a year I read those twaddle books and I enjoyed every one of them.  But I haven't picked one back up for about three years now.  But on Friday when I was packing I wanted to.  Honestly, I was just too lazy to go look for them or have my daughter dig them off her shelf.  So, I came with the aforementioned titles.  I digress...  which is quite normal for me. But before I try to get back on track can I just say (yes, I can because this is my blog and I can say whatever I want and I'm not getting paid to say anything for anyone, so there!) that in conversations with my very favorite dear friends it comes to light that they view these books as pure garbage.  Not smut necessarily, but lacking in any quality writing whatsoever.  These are the same friends, however, that enjoy reading thing that I could never get my head wrapped around.  If I said I wanted to read, understand and enjoy some of the "classics" that they have/do I'd be telling a bold-faced lie.  That's my confession, part of it anyway.

Anyway, not really interested in reading the titles I brought this trip I followed my husband's suggestion and turned to my blog. I've been trying to clarify in my mind the reason for my blog and determine if one of my goals is ever to make an income from it.  The answer lately has been not now - maybe later.  I enjoy writing and using the blog as my creative outlet.  My husband is blessed with a very good job at this point so I don't need the income, thankfully.  My focus is being a good wife and mother in this season of my life so I really can't afford the time it would take to build and maintain a blog that would produce an income.  Another thing that comes to mind when I contemplate "monetizing" my blog is two other publications that I enjoyed passionately until they changed editors and focus.  One went from being completely "ad-free" to filled to the brim with ads, some that really aren't even relevant to that particular publication.  The other simply combined with another publication that the company produced and lost its focus trying to cover too many topics in one publication.  It made me sad, along with many other loyal readers.  It seemed that the focus of these two publications (and I'm sure there are many more that do the same) switched to making more income and in doing so they really lost the thing that made them so appealing to the devoted readers of decades, literally.  It's not like those publications weren't making a profit all those years, but somewhere along the line someone decided it wasn't "enough".  What is enough?  In todays environment the lines of "what's enough" get really blurred, in my humble opinion.  I would rather use what time and energy I have for this blog to focus on the vision and the topic(s) it intends to provide.  Which brings me to the point of this post.  I really need to narrow my focus.  I need to prayerfully discern what vision and topic I want for this blog.  Which really means I need to listen to what God is telling me about it.  It was His leading that brought me here in the first place and I have bounced ideas around over and over again since starting to blog and have not yet landed firmly where I feel I'm supposed to be.  I can't help but think that the reason I have failed to so is in large part due to the fact that my mind is a bit schizophrenic. No, I have not been diagnosed with the disease but the definition seems to fit:

 Contrary to some popular belief, schizophrenia isn't split personality or multiple personality. (Although that fits me sometimes, too!) The word "schizophrenia" does mean "split mind," but it refers to a disruption of the usual balance of emotions and thinking.
 

 There's the key phrase... disruption of the usual balance of emotions and thinking.  I lack balance pretty much all the time.  I am inconsistent and unfocused most of the time.  That's what I have to work with; it's the current reality.  Now, about that blog focus...

Left wondering how the title of the post relates to the content?  Me too - but it's what came to my mind and it's so true!  God IS great, life IS good and people ARE crazy - especially drivers in Pennsylvania!!

Grace and peace,

Susan

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