September 19, 2002
In reality, bloggers have real bodies. From what I can tell, many of them are pretty young. And healthy, too, it seems to me. And, when you’re young, you don’t usually worry much about your health. You smoke, you drink, you drive fast; you indulge in various excesses; you don’t worry about the dangers of blood pressure, cholesterol, sugar, and abhorrent cells on the rampage. You don’t think about your vulnerability, and it’s easy to extend that thoughtlessness to others. (And I include my younger self in all of those charges.)
Last June, Dave Winer, who’s older than many and younger that some (of us bloggers) was stopped short by worries about his health. His recent post about where he is now and how he feels about being vulnerable is a meaningful reminder that, behind the protective façades of our weblogs, we are people who can be injured, hurt, worn down in both body and spirit.
I would like to think that, for all the bait and barbs and banter that we hurl at each other across the reaches of blogdom, we care when one of us hurts. I would like to think that we allow ourselves to desist and defer to the fact that our lives are too short not to fill as much as we can of them with healthy respect, kindness, and caring.
It’s so easy to bait and banter shielded behind our faceless screens. How much harder, and how much more healthy and heartening it is to step outside those barriers and admit that we are vulnerable, that we need hope, that we need each other’s human support.
That's why I have so much respect for Jeneane Sessum's and Mike Golby's style of journaling in their weblogs. That's why I send Dave Winer my very best Crone wishes for health and hope and many more years of beneficial blogging.
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Old Comments (3)
Lisanne on 20 Sep 2002
Just saying hi, Elaine! Have you heard about any neat job openings in Albany lately? I got laid off from work and need to find something. Anything in publishing, writing, journalism, or something creative? Just thought I would check with you! Thanks!
Elaine of Kalilily on 20 Sep 2002
Don't know any offhand, but I'm having lunch with Gina Guiliano next week, and I'll see if she does. Do you have a resume online? Sometimes the State Archives hires free-lance writers to do articles for their magazine. I can pass your info along to the editor.
dzwonki polifoniczne on 13 Jun 2004
Hmmmmm interesting !!!