In my writing class we talk about the ups and downs of blogging, of writing, and of writers block. We are often given "free-writes" with topics to inspire writing off the cuff.
This last week we were given examples of "successful" bloggers. These success stories supposedly gave us numerous ideas for improving our blogs. After reading them I was not inspired, in fact, I was pretty irritated. These blogs were perfect examples about what I hate about the blogosphere. They were trite, repetitive, link-happy reiterations of the vast nothingness that people talk about. Not to mention they were vulgar, uninteresting and irresponsible...and in my opionion, the writing wasn't worth reading either.
Someone once said to me, "if the blogger wasn't famous then reading their blog was just a waste of time". Ouch, that kind of hurt. I'd like to think that the time I spend on my blog is not a waste of time. And hopefully not a waste of my readers' time either. I'm trying to write with substance and meaning. I attempt to work through issues that I know a lot of people share. I'm trying to look for hope and inspiration in an often uninspirational world. Is that not a worthy way to spend my free time?
So anyway, my instructor posed the question: "What inspires you?" So here is my reply:
Ok, I know it sounds hoky, but Love inspires me. Giving inspires me. Positive thinking and hope for a better world inspires me.
And conversely, stress and anger and angst inspire me too. Usually when I'm at a really low place, the words I find are a mechanism for change. Changing my attitude or my outlook or my game plan. Sometimes I have to just sit down and write it out or I swear I will lose it.
And sometimes I have to cry.
One day last fall I cried the entire day. I was so stressed out, so pissed off and saturated from my day that all I had left in me was the urge to write. I just sat down, looked at the blank screen, and effortlessly the thoughts flowed into my fingers and onto the page without my brain as an interface. When I was done, the tears finally stopped.
It was raw, it was real and it was one of the most honest posts I have made. It also got the most feedback.
You see I connected with others who have been there. And that notion that I was going through what so many other's out there have been through in this last year inspired me to keep going. I don't think that is a waste of time.
I think that reaching out to anyone, even if it's only one person, is worthwhile.
And that, is probably the most inspiring thing of all.
