A good conversation with Sean and Stuart the other day about why we blog, should we blog, is blogging addictive, why spend time blogging when you can do real writing, what are we avoiding / escaping from when we blog????

(By the way, the pictures on this post are some of the ones I have enjoyed using - they serve to reinforce the human, moral and spiritual dimensions of what I think makes blogging 'worth it' for me.)

Well, right up front, some of it must be vanity - the assumption someone other than me is sometimes interested in some of what I sometimes say. So a bit of self-indulgence - but it's the other reasons that I hope are the main energy sources.

Some of it is creativity - I love words, I enjoy writing, the 'create a new post' button gets pressed I see the empty whiteness and get thinking and tapping - not just for the sake of it, but because articulation and communication of thought is a significant defining activity of the human person - and of the Christian following after the One who was "the Word made flesh", the articulate communication of who God is.

Some of it is curiosity - wondering if others think as I do, care about what matters to me, laugh at the same things, but also it helps me learn if and how others see life differently and more interestingly than me. Communal reflection and conversation isn't about me being re-assured by others reinforcing my view of the world - but a shared exploration of its ambiguity, frustration, loss, wonder, joy and whatever else happens. A creative communal curiosity about the best ways to share life on this planet might break a few vicious cirles.

Some of it is cathartic - when something gets to me, -  perceived injustice, culpable stupidity, inexcusable arrogance, unnecessary rudeness, blatant greed and needless waste, human hurt and humans causing hurt - that and much else - it helps to name it. So naming injustice, resisting cruelty, saying prayer, giving voice both to moral outrage and to moral admiration - now and again, here and there, this and that happens, and the odd piece of prophetic blogging names it and brings it into the light, so that we can see if its deeds are evil, or if it can be clearly seen that it is the work of God.

And some is celebration - living wittily is still an underlying worldview I try to live. Witty as in wise; witty as in funny; witty as in curious, cathartic, creative, celebratory engagement with the life God gives. Not that I manage anywhere near all of that ; or even some of it most of the time. But to enjoy life and people, to be the occasional gladness maker, to resist the suppressive forces of consumer self interest by generously living its opposite - to laugh, encourage, support, affirm, praise, appreciate, all those whose lives impinge on, and enrich, our own living - that's a worldview compatible with the Kingdom!

Those who missed my induction to blogdom can read what I take living wittily  to mean here. Sean paid me the embarrassingly welcome comment of saying what he thought of that post - he obviously liked it! Living wittily means living attentively (to others), seeing (others) wisely, listening (to others) with critical care, acting supportively and curatively (for others), speaking constructively (to others), and gratefully receiving the grace that comes (from others).

Comments

[Jason]

Thanks for this post Jim. It's a great response to the nagging question, 'Why blog?' I've been asking myself that very question almost daily of late. It seems that it is a convenient way to be involved in some sort of conversation ... though there are just so many conversations going on simultaneously it's too easy to really participate in none of them. How can we do it better? Are we getting the most out of this media? Would more group (co-authored) blogs be a better idea? I don't know. Anyway, I'll keep enjoying your vanity ... and your Haikus ... :-)

[Margaret]

I'm glad you blog too Jim. Some of it has me laughing out loud - the pigeons and the ned and the 10K comment being my two favourites!! Other times it has me scratching my head and re-reading several times to see if I've understood what you're saying/arguing etc. Other times there are poignant posts that make you think about your humanity. Don’t stop. I for one would miss them!

[Danny]

Its a good question isn't it - why we blog? When I am studying I blog to wind down, to get rid of some of the clutter in my head. When I am not studying I do it to keep my mind active...otherwise I would slip into a vegetative state...not good, but oh so easy for me!!

So I blog for myself really and because like you I like words...and I like it when people comment on a post.