Days of Thankfulness, Day 29

When I started this Little Pink Blog of mine over nine years ago, my intention was to tell stories of my adventures in England. That the blog has gone this long still boggles me. Blogging is a largely narcissistic venture; I write posts and assume that someone, somewhere, will want to read them.

About a year ago, a guy I was flirting with commented on my writing and my blog. I said, "I just have a lot of words and ideas and thoughts flying around in my head all the time." He responded, "It's sexy."

I'm thankful for my words, for the ability I have to write. I've had many people tell me I write well, from loving how I capture conversations to enjoying my own brand of wit. It's something I've made a near-constant study of since my school days, taking tricks learned from my freshman English teacher, or from the professor I had at Chico who taught me the value of "sentence tightening." I often feel like I trip over my tongue when I'm speaking--I get excited, so my voice gets louder, my speech gets faster, and suddenly, I'm making up words or making very little sense. But sit me in front of my computer, and away I go. I'd guess that 95% of my blog posts are written on-the-spot, with very little editing, aside from spelling. My posts rarely require research, as such, so there's not a lot of planning that goes into writing this blog. It is, simply, my thoughts as I have them.

An invitation into my brain, perhaps, where words and ideas and thoughts fly around with abandon.

Words are powerful. They can express so much--how I felt in a particular moment, what that reaction was, how the ripples from that reaction touched off more reactions, etc.

Words can lift you up--a friend saying, "I'm so proud of you," a compliment on your outfit. And words can wound--a well-timed comment about your weight, or something else about you. It happens.

So I am careful with my words. I'm not perfect; I've said things, written things, that were not kind. I've regretted them. Overall, I strive to make my words encouraging, positive.

And every day, I'm happy that I have this ability to put words together, to write a blog that satisfies me. I don't know how many people actually read it anymore, but for me, having this record of my thoughts, my adventures, is priceless. It's my story.