I was thinking about my blog today (because I have a big announcement) and I got to feeling guilty that mine is not a very “deep” blog, but I keep to the surface of things. I put on my “public” face when I blog. That means I don’t delve into the real heart issues of my faith, politics, and my personal world-view (while I am a conservationist and try to be “green”, I am not an environmentalist). I try to stay with safe subjects like plants, birds, bugs, grandchildren, books and Harvey.
In short, I am not here to offend anyone but by not offending anyone am I compromising my own deep-seated beliefs?
I hope not. I just learned long ago that the only people who really care about some of those deep-seated beliefs are the people who agree 100% with you and you never reach the people who don’t agree with you. In fact, you can outright alienate the people who don’t agree with you.
And that is one thing I feel very strongly about: I was not put on this earth to alienate people. Now, that could just be the Middle Child speaking. You know: the kid who is always trying to be the peacemaker? I’m a Classic Middle Child.
Another reason I tread that ground softly is this: my children do not agree with me nor do they hold the same ethics as I do. And I want to keep my children as my friends and allies and maybe someday, I hope to win them over to some of my deep-held convictions. I sure am not going to do that by taking a rigid stance on some of the subjects I really, really feel strongly about.
Want to know some of the things I really feel strongly about?
Please look up that Internet Urban Legend BEFORE you carelessly hit “send”. And clean it up, too, by removing all the “FWD” and email addresses of people I don’t know. Because if you don’t, I will look it up on Snopes for you and I will email it back to you and everyone else you just sent it to with the link that says FALSE.
If you are going to pretend to be a photographer and post photos of wildlife on the Internet, please use a wildlife field guide before you: identify an elk as a moose; a Tiger Swallowtail as a Monarch butterfly; a Columbine as a “shooting star” flower. When in doubt put a “?” and be open to the correction of people who KNOW what that darn thing is. Or just ask because Jodi (Living Life with Chemo Brain) will email her sister, Linda, and Linda will send a link to the proper plant ID for you. (I really, really appreciate every time Jodi has done that for me!! 🙂 )
Turn your headlights on in the rain. Yeppers, it is winter in the Pacific Northwest and we have a whole new crop of morons who get up and drive in the dusky light and heavy rain without headlights on. And then they wonder why someone changed lanes into them. Because they are invisible to the rest of the people on the road.
I love the Sound of Music. It is the ONLY musical I like.
I don’t know where that came from except I just got the refrain from “My Favorite Things” stuck in my head.
All of this to say, I am sorry if I am not deep and searching and transparent to the world. I am not transparent even to those closest to me. That’s just how I am. I close up and keep a lot of stuff to myself.
I vow to keep my blog shallow. You can count on that. I will occasionally drift onto the subjects of Idiot Drivers, Wildlife Identification, and Snopes. com, but for the most part – I will stick to shallow subjects like how absolutely adorable my grandchildren are. All five grandsons.
Zephaniah (aka Kilroy)
Javan (“Can you say Grandma?” “Yes.”)
Eliran (the Wild Hair Boy)
Justin (Too far away Boy)
and Micah. November 16, 2010. 7 pounds, five ounces and 20 inches long.
(Congrats to my son & his lovely wife, Kaci!)
Jaci Dawn 
The Sound of Music? Really now….. (actually, I knew that because when she was little and it would come TV, she’d be there to watch it again and again. I just had to tease her about something. After all, I AM the big brother)
Love,
Me
Oh, and don’t get her started on punctuation! Which, by the way, even if you put proper punctuation into your message, this site removes the extra space after the period. See two spaces. Two spaces.
Computers did away with the two-space rule at the end of a sentence. I don’t know why they did that, but Word won’t let you do that. Rather frustrating if you grew up typing on a typewrite and you automatically do two spaces… 😉
I really MUST, someday, watch The Sound of Music. Can you believe I’ve never seen that?
So what’s your big announcement? You can’t say, “I have a big announcement” and then not announce what that annoucement is.
I think since this is your blog, you ought to feel free to post any darn thing you want to. I find that having people disagree with me on something can often be enlightening. If you alienate someone due to the way you feel about something, then they really aren’t someone you want as a friend anyway!
Aren’t any of your kids capable of producing a female child? They are all adorable and I love seeing pictures.
Transparent or not, I have loved finding my best friend from second grade!
You must see the Sound of Music. Course now it is so dated you’ll probably hate it, Jodi. 🙂
My big announcement was not very clear, was it? Baby #5 there at the bottom. 🙂
As for not liking conflict – that really isn’t the issue. I don’t mind civilized conflict & I love a good debate. I just don’t want to go there most of the time with my blog.
Your blogs and photographs are always interesting and fun, and not at all shallow. There’s nothing shallow about beautiful grandchildren and being proud of them, and everybody loves seeing pictures. I was assuming that the photo at the end of your blog was your big announcement? What an adorable boy! Oh my goodness. Congratulations are in order again.
I love The Sound of Music, too. It’s one of my favorite movies and I never get tired of it. Julie Andrews has such a beautiful voice.
David Suzuki said that environmentalism should be a religion. It is a religion, David. That’s why I’m not one. I’m a conservationist…like Jaci. 🙂
Laurelle – I love that quote! Thank you!
Congratulations on grandson #5. He’s adorable just like all the others. 🙂
Sound of Music, loved watching it AND performing it. But then again, you know I am a sucker for the old musicals.
Shallow Blogs. . .Oh PULEEZE, You at least write more often than I do, Mine are very shallow, so shallow in fact that you could drive a hot wheel car through it and the undercarriage would never get wet.
OOPS! forgot one more thing. Congradulations on the newest soccer team member! You might as well start investing in Levi’s . . . . .Really. . .Levi’s as in JEANS!! sorry, I’m getting really bad today.
Oh, oh, my ribs are aching from laughing so hard! I don’t consider your blog(s) shallow, Mary! Full of creativity & grandkids & the spice of life! Thank you!