Curating

I've recently read a blog post about...well....blogging!  One of my favorite blogs (and podcasts) is "CraftyPod", written by Sister Diane.  She had a great post this week titled "Why Bloggers are Curators, and Curators are Really Important".  It's a great read and you can find it here.

This post spoke to me in a big way.  As I began writing today I glanced back at the past few posts I've written and there seems to be a theme.  That theme is "I really miss blogging, but what do I blog about?"  I started doing some thinking about what's holding me back.  Obviously there's the big thing: topic.  For so long I was blogging to update people: tell everyone about living with my Tiny Man, about how he was doing, how he was growing and changing.  Then I was blogging through and about grief after he died.  Now I'm just not so sure.  I'd like to come to this space with some organization in what I write about, not just a random report of what we're doing each day.  I'd like to have a topic...but I don't feel like I'm an expert in any area and have any right to start blogging on things I do...I mean, there are people out there who do that.  They're GOOD at it! 

There's a lot at work in my brain when I think about this blog, and a lot of it is judgement.  "What do you think you have to say?" My subconscious mutters to me.  I read A LOT of blogs every day, and some of them are so beautifully written they regularly move me to tears.  Others are inspirational in my craft life, even more are inspirations in my kitchen.  I've worked very hard at curating (there's that word!) my reading online to the things I only love to read. Something I haven't worked so hard at curating is my online habits.  I think, on average, I probably waste about 2 hours on Facebook every day.  In that time I could write, edit, and publish a blog post...complete with lovely pictures.  I wouldn't be publishing comments weeks later (OH HAI!!!).  I'd be curating my blog's content so much more lovingly. 

I enjoy writing.  I enjoy my life.  I would like to write more about my life.  I have come to accept this week that what I need to do is stop that tiny voice that tells me what I'm writing isn't interesting enough, or creative enough, or good enough....I need to START WRITING again.  I believe that through the process of writing posts I will find a way to express what this blog is about...again.  I can start over.  I need to stop worrying about not being an expert, and share my experiences.  The internet is a wide open place, and people are free to drop by here to read as they wish.  If nothing else, my dad is always here reading.  (Love that.  Hi Dad!)

It's not just my online presence that needs curating....this week I've been in deep clean and purge mode here at the Casa....I'm collecting things to garage sale, I'm reorganizing, I'm trying desperately to stay on top of the clutter.  I want my house to be a place that is more well-curated, to be full of things I absolutely love or use.  Everything else has to go.  This does not come naturally to me....I'm very much a "this will do" type of girl; a collector; a thrifter.  Did I mention I'm also cheap frugal? Decorating a home is not something I am particularly good at.  My bookshelves will never make it on to the pages of a magazine because my books are, you know, books I've actually READ....they're all crammed in there together instead of being thoughtfully organized.  Here's the thing, though...it's starting to drive me nuts.  All the clutter.....the things.....they make it hard to clean during the, oh, ten minutes or so that I have in my day to clean. 

I'm pleased with where I'm at in my life right now....I just feel like my days could use a little curating...a little pruning here and there.  A little less social media, a little more life.  A little less clutter a little more clean.  A little more blogging to get the mental cobwebs swept up.  Here's to plunging ahead and making a new way.