I have thought about writing this post for a while now, and I had a conversation with someone last night which prompted me to do it today. During our conversation, this person said she had been reading my blog and it was making her feel.........I don't remember the exact adjectives she used.........but the gist of it was that she was feeling inferior as a mom. She remarked on how she didn't know how I find the time to do what I do, how I do the blog and the projects, etc. A few nights prior to this conversation, my husband was making a similar point, not reflecting on how the blog makes HIM feel, but speculating that others might feel that way when reading the blog. (And DH knows from 15 years of firsthand knowledge that this lady ain't perfect. Amazingly, he still wants to keep me around. Bless him!!) Anyway..........I am determined to set the record straight on all these false notions.
First, I am an ordinary person just like any of you reading the blog right now. I have MANY flaws and shortcomings and there are many things that don't get done around here. I lose my temper with my children much more often than I'd like to admit, but I'm admitting it here. I often feel inadequate as a mom and as a wife. I am not the world's greatest housekeeper. I could keep going on and on here, seriously.
Second, what I write about on the blog is only a TINY TINY snapshot of what goes on in my life and in my home. I am choosing to show you the best so that you may be inspired (as I so often am when I read other blogs, more on that in a minute.....). The last thing I would want is for someone to feel WORSE after reading the blog. I have chosen to start the blog as a way to communicate with others about one of my passions, Montessori education. Along the way, I have chosen to show other things that I enjoy and do. Please know that my purposes are pure. In no way am I trying to portray myself as some kind of WonderWoman, because that portrayal would not only be inaccurate, it would be ridiculous. I struggle on a daily basis to be the kind of person I want to be. However, I am choosing to keep that struggle private. Today's post is intended to shed a little light on that part of my reality, however. I just want you to know that I don't have it all together.
Third, I am the type of person who is easily inspired by what others do. When I read about or see cool things someone else did, I rarely beat myself up for not thinking of it first or for not doing it myself, etc. Instead, my typical reaction is: "Wow! That's cool! I'd like to try that!" (To maintain perspective: there are many, many things other people do that I am NOT interested in doing myself. And I don't let myself feel any guilt about it.) As I have grown older and wiser (nearing my 4th decade!!), I have come to realize that not everyone is like me. This was best illustrated to me about 7 years ago when I was eating lunch with a group of teachers I worked with at the time. We had spent that morning listening to a speaker talk about implementing a new reading strategy in the classroom. I had come away from the presentation energized and excited to try many of the new things that were discussed. At lunch, I asked a fellow teacher (a veteran teacher with many more years of teaching experience than myself) what she thought of the presentation. I was SHOCKED when she said that she felt BAD after hearing the talk. She came away feeling down on herself and her teaching because she wasn't doing everything just like the speaker said. I am serious here, I was really BLOWN AWAY that 2 people could hear the same presentation and come away with two polar opposite responses. It was really very enlightening (and sad, actually). Not deterred by my colleague's negative reaction, I went ahead and tried many of the new ideas in my classroom.
I am sharing this story here to encourage you to take away from this blog the things you may find inspiring, can the rest (along with any associated guilt), and live looking forward not backward. I used to be more of a person who read about lots of cool ideas, but didn't try many of them. In a completely ironic twist of fate, if you will, it was only when I started blogging that I experienced sufficient motivation to actually TRY many of the ideas that I had been thinking about. I've said it before and I'll say it again...........blogging has enriched my life and the life of my family.
I will end by stating that my sincerest hope is that you will read this blog and feel GOOD after reading it. I could not stand it if I thought it was making anyone feel negative. So..........even if you've never posted a comment here before, I would love to hear your thoughts on this post. I have read similar posts on Jo's blog and Jennifer's blog and I admit to feeling "better" after reading what they had to say on this topic.
OK........enough rambling. Take care and send me a comment. OK???
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