I Heart Blogging!

I’m relatively new to blogging. When I started this project, my intention was to enrich the experience of students taking my online healing course. I also thought it would be a way to spread the word about the course and share ideas with people who were considering taking it, so they could get a sense of my voice. I suspect it’s doing those things, but…as is often the case when starting a new endeavor, I’m finding that I’m getting much more out of blogging than I could have ever expected.

First of all, writing regularly sparks creativity. Having been a writer for a number of years, I suffered from the misconception that I needed to set aside a lot of time to write – and hence, wrote intermittently or not at all. The practice of blogging – writing shorter posts several times a week – has made all the difference in my ability and desire to come up with ideas and follow through – writing, editing and then posting. Many times, I’ll get up, fix my coffee, sit down at the computer, and write a complete post…before I head to the office. It’s awesome to be able to do this in less than and hour.

Secondly, I had no idea how many really cool people commit their time, energy and creativity to write awesome stuff…regularly. As I’ve cruised around the WordPress blogosphere (for those of you who don’t know, this blog is published through WordPress.com, which hosts about half a million blogs worldwide), I’ve been inspired, amazed, touched and amused by the wonderful writers on this platform. Blogging seems to hearken back to an age when people wrote meaningful letters to friends and family – stories of their lives, things that interested them, things that they were learning or teaching, before the telegraph, telephone or internet. The quality of communication offered by my fellow bloggers through poetry, photography and prose has enriched my life in ways that truly surprise me.

Finally, I have found that bloggers are generous. They’re free with their praise, comments and suggestions. The activity of blogging is often grouped into the category of “social networking.” Yes, I can see that. But the group of bloggers that I’ve already met in six short weeks blows me away. I’ve met intuitives, counselors, poets, historians, feng shui masters, and serious writers. The “networking” part is really more about finding these amazing people – on this wonderful platform. People I would have never met, had I not decided to start a blog…

Love,

Cathy

©CathyUlrich and LargeSelf, 2012