So for several years I have been questioning if continuing to blog was a good thing. I would occasionally give it up, reevaluate it, and always decided to move forward for various reasons.
On top of the usual things that have concerned me about the blog, (which I wont even bother going into) some good things have recently happened that put my decision to end the blog into a place of peace.
I have been blogging for 6 years now, and have seen my blog take many shapes and serve many purposes in my life during that time. Some more productive than others.
I find both blogging and reading blogs as something that can swing in both positive and negative directions, widely varying upon the reader and/or writer.
I have often found myself in the dangerous trap of comparing my life to someone else's "blog life". And I say "blog life" because its simply the parts of someone's life they want to share, selectively, and often it is not a full representation of the entire picture. (I find the same to be true of facebook as well)
Its easy to read someone's posts and make wrong assumptions:
The post about life frustrations: "Surely that person doesn't love the kids God blessed them with or appreciate anything they have."
The post about happy life experiences: "Surely their children are perfect and don't ever misbehave. Certainly that person never loses their patience with their children or raises their voice. They must NEVER fight or disagree with their spouse, what a perfect marriage!"
And, the worst, in my opinion, the assumption, "That person does/has it all! How do they do it?"
(in my experience I have not found any of these assumptions to be true of anyone!)
The reality, in my opinion, is that life and people are a little of everything... but sharing only some parts of life makes it super hard for people not to assume anything. I have struggled for years trying to put blogs in perspective - knowing that just because someone appears to have it one way or the other doesn't mean they actually do...
I never understood the reluctance of some people to be "real" with others (because of the assumptions), via blog, facebook or in real life, but over the years I have slowly begun to understand it and have felt a pull to be more private (not less real) with what is going on in my life. And given the recent changes here, I think its a good time to make the decision final.
I do plan to keep up with my writing, (when I have two wrists again!) although I'm not 100% sure in what way. Maybe I will start a new blog, or focus on something else entirely. Only time will tell.
So to all of my daily blog readers: I appreciate all of the time you have spent reading my blog, its been a super fun ride! Thank you so much for sharing it with me! Feel free to email me at rebeccasbeautifullife (at) gmail (dot) com or find me on facebook if you would like to keep in touch!
