It's Posting Day!!

    

Photo by Allef Vinicius on Unsplash

    Happy First Post to my new blog, With Joy for the Work!

    I am so, so excited for this new start! And I hope you, dear reader, enjoy this post and all the ones to hopefully come!

    For those who have not known me previously here online, I had another blog before. But I wanted to start over for several reasons. Here are a few:

    To proudly plant my blog beginning in the here and now. When I first began posting online, I compared myself to others who had started earlier. I thought that I could have accomplished more and would not be struggling to keep up if I had started posting somewhere in the era of 2012 through 2016. These thoughts took away a lot of the joy I could have had just enjoying what online spaces have to offer us. After some thought and prayer, I knew I wanted to go ahead and start over. 🌻-To stand here, in 2024, and plant the flag of my blog, not wishing it was another year.-🌻 I am hoping that by claiming the year that I started in, knowing full well that it is not the idolized 2012-2016, some of the comparison that bugs me may finally be laid to rest. 

    So, here I am. It's 2024, a whole decade after when I wish I'd started, and that is okay! 💛For such a time as this, remember. 

    To post on only one platform for a time. I have been struggling to maintain an online presence on so many platforms. I thought I wanted to juggle so many because that is what I saw some people doing, but then I realized that it just wasn't peaceful. And that there were plenty of other people who create the kind of art I love that only have two or even one platform they're on or are consistent with. 

    While online spaces are fun, the most important thing to me isn't being on a platform just because I can. The most important thing to me is making sure the gifts that I've been given are cared for and used to make the world beautiful and to remind people of Jesus. And if one of those gifts leads me to a certain platform, then I'll check it out and go from there. I no longer wish to stress myself out trying to do everything all at once. 

    So, I've re-arranged some things and set aside others. To just, simply blog for now.

    To practice writing short essays. I was reading some other blogs and I got inspired by their simplicity. They posted a poem, or a series of ideas, things were short, sweet, and to the point. I want to try writing like that. Some had really eye-catching hooks (the first sentence), or awesome one-liner endings that left you thinking or simply sealed your happiness with your time with them. I want to do that, too. 

    To have an unprofessional, personal blog. I've been worrying so much about things being up to industry standard with what I post, and, yes, I still want to put my best foot forward. (This is the public internet, after all). But I want to drop some of the pressure I feel to stay within a niche, or grow, or anything like that. No cares about followers, comments, or how often I post. No worries to be perfect. I just want to blog. And a day may come in my artist journey when I have to make a professional website to promote my professional art, *in Aragorn's voice* "But it is not this day!!" (Jackson, 2003)

    To have a pretty online space of my own to grow my craft and to grow as a person. This point doesn't need much elaboration. I want to work hard to make beautiful things so that what I post here can be a joy to anyone who comes across it. (yes, for YOU. The person reading this right now!!) 

 

Well, those are all my reasons. Do any of them resonate with you? If you'd like, feel free to comment below and let me know your thoughts on this post.

Thank you so much for reading and have an awesome rest of your day! 

 🌻🌻🌻

One of the songs I was listening to as I edited this post:

Reference:

Jackson, Peter. (Director). (2003). The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King [Film]. New Line Cinema, WingNut Films.