For the 1,000th Time

I could hardly believe my eyes a couple of months ago when I noticed that my “published blog posts” count was inching up toward the 1,000 mark. All sorts of things ran through my mind.

♥ 

For one thing, I thought about the time I’ve spent blogging. That’s 1,000 blog posts photographed, written, previewed 10 times to make sure everything’s aligned, links linked up, labels added, hearts inserted and colors changed…  Blogging is time consuming.

“Oh,” I thought, “If only I had all that time back…” But, for what? What would I have done if I hadn’t been blogging? Now there’s a question to ponder.

And while a considerable amount of time has been invested in 1,000 posts since November 2008, the benefits of that investment have been beyond rewarding for me. So with this, my 1000th post, I wanted to document some of the things I love about blogging – the things that stand out for me and make the investment in blogging seem totally worthwhile.

Friendship ~

In the beginning, I used this space to post photos of craft projects that I wanted to show my mom. And in the beginning, my mom was usually my one and only reader and commenter. Oh how she loved my blog. ♥

When I took an online class and had a chance to meet other bloggers I started making blog friends. And they weren’t just friends in my same town. Or state. Or country even! They were from all over the planet. If I hadn’t been blogging for the past 1,000 posts, I wouldn’t have made friends like Ruth in London. Sian in Ireland. Amy in Australia. Robyn in New York. The list goes on and on, and I don’t mean to sound like I’m bragging at all, but man I have made a ton of friends over the course of 1,000 posts!

But wait. There’s more. Not only have I made new friends, I have also formed stronger bonds with distant family members and real life acquaintances. It always catches me off guard when I run into someone I haven’t seen for a while and we start talking about what we’ve been up to and they say, “Oh yeah, I read that on your blog.” :o) Haha - my life is a bit of an open book, I suppose, but I feel so honored that they take time to visit here.

Personal Growth ~

This section could be its own blog post, if I ever in a million years wanted to get that personal on my blog. ;o) But I have to say that this is a big one for me. I've written this section over and over - trying to articulate the ways that I have changed in terms of personal growth through blogging without being too personal on my blog!

The main thing that stands out for me is how writing my own stories - posts about me, my life, my thoughts and feelings - has helped me to accept myself in a way that I had never known how to do before. There's been something very empowering about writing my thoughts and then clicking over to preview my blog posts. For me, as I read through my own words I've gained a deeper understanding of who I am, and what I stand for. It's made me more comfortable with who I am, and that's not saying that I think I'm "all that." I'm just saying that believing in myself has become a whole lot easier because I've been blessed with blogging.

Feedback via Comments ~

Oh, comments. Those comments that lift me up and validate that I’m on the right track; remind me that I have something in common with someone else; tell me I’ve entertained or lightened someone’s day; and that I am not alone.

Along with receiving comments comes the giving part as well. There are weeks when I keep up with friend’s blogs and have time to leave comments, and there are weeks that just get away from me and I feel lame for not being able to participate more. I worry about that, and stress just a little, but what’s a working girl to do? All I can do is all I can do.

Giving and receiving comments in our online community is such a fun part of blogging. I appreciate the time it takes to leave a comment, and I always appreciate when you leave one here. ♥

Inspiration ~

As I visit other blogs and make my daily travels around the World Wide Web, I find more inspiration than I will ever be able to bring to fruition in my simple lifetime. Some days my head is so full of ideas I can barely focus on my day-to-day responsibilities. Saving things on Pinterest has given me the illusion that someday I’ll bring all that inspiration to life. Someday.

I've also been fortunate to follow the blogs of some very uplifting and positive people. They inspire me with their strength and courage, and their tenacity in life. There is also something very gratifying knowing that perhaps I have been an inspiration to others. This one usually catches me by surprise, but I’m so happy when that happens. :o)

 

Photography ~

Several years ago, Carrie talked about getting a nice camera. Once she had hers and I had a chance to play with it a little, I knew I had to have my own. I wanted my blog photos to look like some of the big bloggers that I admired. And while there will always be bloggers with much better photos than mine, I'm proud of my growth in this area. It hasn’t come without a lot of practice and effort on my part, but I don’t think I would have ever been this interested in improving my photography skills had it not been for blogging.

Photography is a hobby that surprised me. For one thing, I’m surprised at how much there is to learn about taking a great photo. I was surprised to realize the artistic aspect of photography. And I’m surprised at how much I love it. Love.It.

A scrapbooking friend once mentioned how much she hated sitting next to someone at a crop who wanted to show her every photo in her crop bag. {I kind of might be that girl.} When you visit my blog you probably expect to see a photo or two, so this is a fun way for me to share those photos without irritating my crop neighbor. ;o)

 

Writing ~

Friends, I have always loved writing. Blogging actually gives me an excuse to write creatively, and I continue to be surprised that people actually want to read some of the random stuff I write! Haha – that’s pretty awesome, really.

I know that the opportunity to write on a regular basis has changed and improved the way I write. I know that my sentence structure and punctuation in blog posts aren’t always 100% correct, but this is no English term paper I’m writing. I think that my blog writing style mimics the way I speak in real life, and I love that blogging makes a comfortable space for me to do that.

Writing personal stories for my blog has helped me connect with my past, and in many ways has helped to heal me. I won’t get into a lot of deep explanation here, but I’m sure that blogging has been as beneficial to me as daily journaling might be for others.

 

Hobbies ~

I have had creative hobbies all my life spanning from needlework to ceramics to jewelry making to scrapbooking... I suppose the hobby to cap all hobbies is blogging. In a way I guess you could say that blogging is my creative journal. It’s a place to gather all those crafting projects, share recipes I love, tell stories about things that tug my heart strings, show my photos, and hang out with people I like to hang out with.

It's true. Blogging is one of my favorite hobbies!

 

In Summary ~

I just want to take this opportunity to give a heartfelt thank you and to express my appreciation to all of you who read my blog, support me with comments or emails, like my posts and photos on Facebook, and have helped me to be comfortable just being me here on this humble little blog.

Blogging continues to amaze me. Of all the things I am in this life, I love that “blogger” is one of those things. It’s become an important part of who I am, and it’s been such a fun way to live my life for the past 1,000 posts.

Thank you for being part of my blogging journey – it wouldn’t be the same without you! Whoever you are, however you know me, no matter how you found this space that I call PaperTurtle, thank you for continuing to walk this path with me.

And thank you for reading my 1,000^th post.

Gosh, I love blogging.

♥