A Voice In The Wilderness

Can anyone hear me? Am I alone? Does it matter if I speak? Should I have an opinion? Why do I think I have anything to say that is worth reading?

OK, as one of the least diligent bloggers I do wonder why I set this up. I had such grandiose plans of typing a quick entry each night after the kids had been put to bed but that didn't happen. This was not supposed to be a magnum opus but ramblings of a stay-at-home mother who figured this to be an online diary.

Penmanship is a lost art these days- now I sound old and yes policemen do look young to me- and it is easier to type or text rather than sit down with pen and paper. Enter blogging- everyone is doing it ! Traditional barriers have been broken as language use has changed and there is no longer a feeling that only the educated can express an opinion. The internet is for hoi polloi.

As technology has been more obvious and prevalent it seems like communities have become defined by the online world. Families have become fractured for one reason or another, members moving away, and people are trying to connect on a different level. The internet is becoming our family through forums, chat sites, etc. as we are further away from our own whether this be a physical or emotional distance.

We are seeking identity and the ability to communicate on a wider scale hoping that somewhere in the wilderness we will find others who will be able to laugh with us, advise and sympathise.

A perfect example of this is the way we raise children. (N.B. 'nowadays' was missing but boy did I want to put it there). In days of yore, even a generation ago, the primary contact for all things relating to children was MUM. She knew, had experienced and more importantly had survived the trials and tribulations of child-rearing. Who do we go to now? The internet, of course. A faceless entity that strangely seems familiar and welcoming. It is not judgmental but does not have chocolate biscuits, a glass of wine and a tissue should we need it.

Is this better than before? I doubt it. We are all insecure in our own ways but the fact that people are ready to bear their soul to strangers somehow helps and gives comfort. I am conflicted about internet advice but that is my problem. I speak to my mother every day and ask all manner of questions and then seek out other answers from this other world. Guess what- Mum is usually right.

This is all a round about way of apologising for being bad at something. I had hoped to write more. That, alas, sounds more like an epitaph ...." hoped for more" but is not meant to be. I just wanted to ramble and hope that I was not alone in the way I felt or dealt with things.

Having an opinion is a good thing- share it and it doesn't matter if it took a while to type it.