The highlight reel, but still real

I have a confession to make.  (Well, nothing too earth-shattering, but still.)  I don't read many blogs.  The reason?  Blogs written by people don't know in real life tend to leave me feeling less than adequate.  If I know the writer, I know a few of their not-so-great moments and know they are human just like me.  I can appreciate their words.  But, if I don't, I can only assume the writer I only know through a blog lives the happy and charmed life portrayed in the always-positive posts.  Even though I know it, I FORGET

THIS IS THEIR HIGHLIGHT REEL.

 

What used to be reserved solely for Christmas letters can now be updated infinitely if the writer desires not only on a blog, but Facebook or Twitter or whatever.  (I still don't hashtag--I feel like I'm about 90 years old.)  I think there's even a coined term for this feeling of inadequacy--mom jealousy, or something like that.  

 

The best compliment I can receive as a blogger is that my blog is real or honest.  I don't want to portray some sort of perfect rural South Dakota existence.  If you think that we do live in a fairy tale, please come and visit.  After five minutes, your illusion will be shattered.  Guaranteed. :) 

 

But, there's a fine line when it comes to how much postive or negative to blog.  How real can/should I go?  Of course, I am not going to share anything too deeply personal for all the world to see.  (Not that I have any deep, dark secrets . . . unless the kids' bus drivers and teachers say otherwise!)  No one likes a Pollyanna, but no one likes a complainer, either.  Thanks to my genes, I wake up nearly every morning feeling nervous/anxious/worried for no reason and working out is my natural Zoloft. . . do people really want to read that?  Probably not.  Like everyone, I end most days stressed and needing to decompress . . . wondering if I planted any seeds in my children's lives that day.  I acknowledge that sometimes people can confuse sharing faith with preaching.  My faith is my foundation not because I am some holy person, but because I WANT to be.  To tell you the truth, I don't know how anyone could navigate this world without a faith life.  At least I can't.  And that's why I keep trudging on the faith journey and sharing it with you.

 

And, so, this blog will remain our family's highlight reel with a little real-ness mixed in.  Yes, my kids and I make real apple pies, but we eat plenty of hot dogs, too.  Yes, I have had the opportunity to be home with my children, but I have spent more days than I care to admit begrudging that I didn't have a job outside of home. 

 

I will continue to write is as I try to write our yearly Christmas letters--how I really try to live--acknowledging that our family faces adversity, but trying to concentrate on the blessings of life. 

 

Because none of us live a perfectly charmed life, no matter what impressions our blogs give.

 

But, we all are blessed--maybe in very different ways--but we are all BLESSED.