Too much information?

A really good friend of mine recently commented to me that he didn't understand why women felt the need to "tell everything" - to put too much information (about themselves, their feelings, etc) out there into the universe for everyone to read, hear, digest and comment on. Ok, I expanded a little on what he said, but it got me to thinking...I mean, it's not the first time that I have been questioned about "Why are you doing a blog now?" - my mother and my grandmother REALLY don't get it, but yet they enjoy reading them. What is the motivation behind putting my thoughts and feelings out into the public realm? Does it do any good? Does it serve a purpose? Maybe not in the grand cosmic scheme of things, but this is what I have found out about blogging...for me:

1) It is a creative release. I have always (tried to) keep a "daily" journal, since I was a preteen. Writing stuff down that I could not talk about out loud was a way for me to deal with the things going on around me over which I had no control. My parents' divorce, living with my maternal grandparents for a while when my mother first remarried, going through cultural shock when this very Southern girl was transplanted to the concrete jungles of the Bronx NY - all this stuff I could write about - even if I couldn't talk about it. Going back and reading some of the stuff I wrote back then - always interesting. [Yeah, my journals are in my will, entrusted to someone who will keep my secrets even after I'm gone! But if Hollywood comes knocking, do you think Halle will be available to play me on the big screen? hahaha]

2) Hopefully, it is a blessing to someone. I grew up not knowing my parents' stories from their childhood, teen years, early adulthood - and therefore, was doomed to make some of their same mistakes in life. Not their fault - the older generation in which they grew up functions under the perception that "private things are private" and "home stuff should be kept at home" [which ain't necessarily bad], but if I had known some of their stories, maybe I could have avoided some of their mistakes. I am sure that I would have made my own mistakes, but maybe they would have been different ones than the ones they made - 'cause as I grow older, I have discovered, I am definitely the child of BOTH of my parents!! If by telling my story (or stories), I can help someone else from making a mis-step - or help them see something in a way that they never thought about before, that is great. We are here to help each other along the way. Sharing our life experiences is one way to do that.

3) God is amazing. And I want to share that with people. While it is important to reverence Him and praise Him as our Creator/Father/Redeemer/God, it is equally important to KNOW Him...to understand His love for me, for you - on a up close and personal basis. So, that is why I talk about rainbows showing up just for me; flowers that bloom on magnolia trees and then disappear; lessons that He tries to teach me...because it is personal and it is just for me...just as it is personal and just for you.

There are a lot of blogs out there. There are a lot of people talking and discussing and sharing their lives - often with total and complete strangers. I am often amazed at what people are willing to share about themselves, their lives, their hopes and dreams. I am amazed at what I am willing to share...but I truly feel "called" to do this - and until such time as I am led otherwise, I pray God to be a blessing to anyone who takes time to read whatever God places on my heart to say.

Be blessed.