www.mamakatslosinit.com
This was my first ever blog post, back when the idea was new to me.
The idea to start a blog evolved over the last month, starting on Christmas Day 2010 when my husband presented me with a lap top computer. I carried it around the entire first day reading blogs on everything from politics to gardening. ( On another note: why is there not more overlap between those two topics? Wouldn't we all be better off if our legislators knew about nurturing something small so it flourishes? )
Having this lap top has been such an unexpected treat! I can explore. I can play. I can record my thoughts without interruption. A personal lap top is the modern day equivalent of Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own. I am ready to enter that space and encourage you to find your "own room" as well.
In the days following Christmas, I came across a book that was so familiar just the sight of it made me smile. Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy by Sarah Ban Breathnach is all about living a simple life and learning to feel gratitude for all you've been given. Breathnach wrote a reflection for each day of the year. The book, complete with a touching inscription, was given to me by a friend I have had since college. It represented a lifeline. Life at that point was anything but simple--abundant yes! My husband and I were parenting a six, three and one year old while renovating a lovely Queen Anne Victorian house which had not even been fully electrified. I was attempting to maintain my Social Work career part time; and my father had just died. I had little "me time", and the length of the book's daily reflections was absolutely perfect. Short enough for me to be able to keep up with while meaningful enough that I was glad I had.
So, when I saw the book on the shelf I immediately decided 2011 would be a Simple Abundance year. One of the tasks that Breathnach endorses is keeping a gratitude journal. This blog now serves that purpose. As I shift from spiral notebook to keyboard, I will note things for which I am thankful. It doesn't matter in the least if others would be grateful for the things I am. What matters is the experience of gratitude. As I acknowledge my gratitude for certain things (and people), I notice them more and notice the things (and people) that annoy me less. I feel an increase in contentedness. A happy New Year is well underway.
Having this lap top has been such an unexpected treat! I can explore. I can play. I can record my thoughts without interruption. A personal lap top is the modern day equivalent of Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own. I am ready to enter that space and encourage you to find your "own room" as well.
In the days following Christmas, I came across a book that was so familiar just the sight of it made me smile. Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy by Sarah Ban Breathnach is all about living a simple life and learning to feel gratitude for all you've been given. Breathnach wrote a reflection for each day of the year. The book, complete with a touching inscription, was given to me by a friend I have had since college. It represented a lifeline. Life at that point was anything but simple--abundant yes! My husband and I were parenting a six, three and one year old while renovating a lovely Queen Anne Victorian house which had not even been fully electrified. I was attempting to maintain my Social Work career part time; and my father had just died. I had little "me time", and the length of the book's daily reflections was absolutely perfect. Short enough for me to be able to keep up with while meaningful enough that I was glad I had.
Originally Posted Feb. 2, 2011
Awww, what a nice first post! Such a positive way to start your blogging experience. I started blogging about the same time - early 2010. It's interesting how our blogs evolve over the years. And I have to agree with you on the laptop. I was a little late to the party on that score- I just got one last year. I love it too!
ReplyDeleteI never thought I would totally give up the desk top, but couldn't tell you the last time I used it.
ReplyDeleteI have been blogging at wordpress, but am so frustrated with Bluehost that I am ditching and moving over to Blogger. That is how I happened to read this post again.
A thankfulness journal is definitely a way to get in touch with all the tiny miraculous things God is doing daily that would otherwise go unnoticed and it cultivates content. I often recommend the practice to young military people we work with in Bible study
ReplyDeleteWow! Isn't it fun to go back to see what we were blogging about years ago? What a lovely post to look back on. :)
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