I noticed yesterday that my blog was receiving three times the usual number of visitors and because my inquiring mind wanted to know, I did a little investigating to find out where the traffic was coming from. I was led to a French website and a blog post containing a couple of my photographs (taken without my knowledge) along with what I think was meant to be a review of sorts. Being curious, I copied and pasted the text into google translate. The translation wasn’t great, but enough for me to get the impression that the words were meant to be flattering, but flattering in a way that made me feel uncomfortable. The article had been shared numerous times on facebook, and then there were comments as well. I should have just closed the site at this point, but instead I started copying and pasting comments into the translator, afraid of what I might read, but wanting to know. Most people commenting were not reading my words here because my blog is in English (although I did add a button in my sidebar today so that it can be translated now.) They were simply looking at my photographs, and forming opinions about me and my family which feels terribly unfair whatever the opinion formed is. Again, the translations that I obtained weren’t perfect, but I think I was able to get what people were saying. Many had nice things to say, although false assumptions based on my photographs were numerous and made me feel like a fraud. I do enjoy photography and of course my favorite subject is anything surrounding my family and nature, not because I want to “show them off” but because I love them. However, “Lovely and inspiring” photographs do not translate to the perfect life being lived by the “perfect mother” on the other side of the lens. I’ve made my share of apologies to my children during this week alone. One commenter noted that I obviously have a very large home amongst other luxuries (there are eight of us in 1500 square feet, and to get a needed second vehicle my husband is trading labor for a car because we can’t afford a car payment. We’re pretty ordinary.)
There were lots of negative comments criticizing me for painting my life as perfect, for sharing what is unattainable by most, and refusing to show the “runny noses.” I was accused of staging my life for this blog (Precisely what I enjoy taking photos of and sharing here are the real moments that make up a day. I am just good at grabbing the camera. This is why I could never be a portrait photographer. I am not inspired by staged photography. Although I do specifically take somewhat staged photos of finished objects of course.) One woman compared my family to the family of one of her neighbors: people who homeschool seven children, keep horses, and somehow drop horse dung on her property while simultaneously waking her up too early in the morning. I am not upset by these judgements because I too have been guilty of making my own judgements based on the surface, or what I choose to see. And I should add that some of the women commenting left completely non judgemental comments appreciating what this blog is meant to be and defending that. What upset me is that I could only be a spectator of this running commentary about me and my family. I couldn’t say, “But wait, we’re not all that different!” You must be registered on this site to leave a comment, and of course I don’t speak French.
I didn’t get to look any of these women in the eye and say, “Please don’t compare yourself or your life to mine. I am just a mom, like you. I am always a sinner, rarely a saint. We’ve made many a sacrifice to live the life we do, and while it may look different than yours, it is neither inferior nor superior. We are simply living our calling to the best of our ability and only by the Grace of God. I carry joy through both my good days and my bad because I know the love of my Creator, and I can literally see His love all around me: in the faces of my children, in the flowers that grow on the side of the road, in the bees flying to and from their hives. Please understand that I take and share my photos because they reflect for me the Author of life, and His gifts to me (and to you!) I share them here to hopefully make you smile, to share my joy with you, not to fill your heart with comparisons or shame.”
But you know, then there would be those who would simply discount me as a religious lunatic. That’s okay with me. I don’t come here to preach, but when things get personal, I can’t remove my faith from my response.
I accept that keeping a public journal opens me up to judgement of all sorts. I have to either be okay with that or quit sharing here. I hate the thought of someone visiting this place and walking away discouraged or angry. My purpose in writing this is not to say, “Poor me, I was judged.” My concern is for the mom who saw a handful of pretty photographs and looked around her and saw the laundry piled up, the kids still in their pajamas, and the handprints on the windows and made a comparison. I have those things as well. But, I am not going to start documenting runny noses, or messy rooms in my photographs. We’d all get tired of that quickly. But sometimes it’s good I think, in this strange world of blogging and online sharing, that we remind ourselves that behind the screens we are all human: flawed and frail and with feelings. We are meant to try and love each other despite our shortcomings and our failings. We’ve all got dirty laundry.
I must add that Jonny was greatly amused by all the bad translations spit out by Google Translate. While he wasn’t bothered by the comments themselves, he feels slighted that the words, “handsome husband” never appeared. “That’s just low.” “It’s mean,” he says.
updated to add: The author of the original post on the French blog contacted me with an apology for taking my photos without permission and also for the way the comments turned, which obviously was out of her control. She was very kind and offered to make amends in whatever way I chose. (Her kind words were enough.)
Anyway…Do you want to see what we’ve been working on around here? Okay.
The bathroom has moved from the being ripped out phase to the being rebuilt phase. This could take awhile.
I am almost finished with Larkspur’s Bulle.
I am on track with my Winterwoods Sampler.
And, I made Silas some new pants. I’ve got a second pair cut out as well.
(The fabric is from the Moda Kasuri line. The pattern is from Handmade Beginnings
It’s amazing what having a house in chaos can do for my crafty productivity. While I am not about to show off our messy house, here’s what our front porch looks like right now.
And now I will close this “too serious for my taste post on what is supposed to be my lots of fun blog.”
Thank you, all of you who are able to visit this place and appreciate what I share here. I appreciate you all more than I can say.
This may sound strong seeing as we have never met, but I love you and feel very honored that you are willing to share all that you do here on your blog with all of us. You just keep on keeping on and remember that you do make a difference, a good difference, with your readers. At least with this reader you do. Thank you. God bless you always.
Oh, and as for the dirty laundry, it is never ending at my home and I have three heaping piles around the house to prove it…but I’m not going to snap and post any pics of them to prove it. 😉
Thank you Kelly, and I really think we should all be able to say I love you without feeling weird about it!! love, Ginny
I really dislike that people feel they can just take photographs. I’ve had this happen as well. I love Pinterest but it seems like websites like these create a feeling that our photographs are somehow shared property. Love your blog and have never felt that you were trying to make your life look perfect. Beauty is indeed all around us.
Becca
Your blog is wonderful! I read every day – thanks Google Translate (uuuaaaaah, grrrrrrr, uiiiiiii!) and thanks verry very big linguistic imagination :-).
Blog is wonderfool and Jonny is a handsome husband!
Greetings from Czech, Petra
HI Ginny,
I love your blog. I do not post often, but always enjoy reading about you dear children and every day happenings. It is amazing how some people judge.
I love reading your blog, it is always a daily dose of inspiration!!
Hello Ginny,
I love your blog. I enjoy visiting here and seeing what you share. I admire your honesty and I come here feeling inspired again and again.
I get nervous sharing so much on my blog sometimes because I know it opens me up to judgement and criticism. I remind myself it all comes with having a blog. The people who are touched by it in a positive way make it so worth it.
I just want you to know that I appreciate your space here very much.
Love to your beautiful family,
Taryn
For the record, Johnny is a handsome husband. According to my hunk of a husband, who has seen some of the posts of your remodeling and says Johnny did it the “right way”, which I usually don’t hear because my husband(fine woodworker and carpenter) usually gets frustrated because people cut corners on their projects or doesn’t bother to find out the correct way of doing it. Hope that gives Johnny a boost and as for you Ginny, even though we have never met, I feel like we are friends. Please don’t let anyone get you down…your a wonderful mother and wife.
Oh yes, a boost indeed. Thank you!! Jonny appreciates it. He certainly never cuts corners (even when I want him to!!!) love, Ginny
I love reading your blog for who you are. I wish you lived close to me so I could learn to knit like you. I love your pictures, your knitting, your garden, just everything out your blog, don’t change.
You know, you can’t win. You either get European misconceptions about your/my “perfect” life or American anal critique about kids’ uncombed hair, goofy, out-of-style clothes, irresponsible family size. I’ve heard overweight mothers of large family criticized for letting themselves go and skinny mothers of large families pitied because having all those kids has “obviously” taken a toll on her body. If your lifestyle makes people feel uncomfortable, they often get nasty about things that really don’t matter. It’s a defense mechanism, I guess. (It’s one reason I never got into blogging – my melancholic temperment wouldn’t deal with the criticism well.) I’ve been reading a book “Daring Greatly” and while secular, I think it is reconcilable with a Catholic understanding of self-worth, the openness to vulnerability (humility) and how to deal with others tearing your down when you “dare greatly”.
Please don’t let a bunch of judgemental people get you down, your blog is a huge inspiration to me!!
What a great line you wrote when you said, “But you know, then there would be plenty who would simply discount me as a religious lunatic. I don’t come here to preach, but when things get personal, I can’t remove my faith from my response.”
I’m a Mormon, and I am inspired by how open you are about your faith and how inseperable it is from other aspects of your life. For me, that is a sign of true devotion, void of hypocrisy.
None of us are perfect. It’s always easy to find another’s flaws. When I started blogging, I thought I would share funny mommy stories, or rant about how hard it was raising an Autistic child, and then I found myself taking pretty pictures and writing about the joys more and more often, and I realized that THIS was the stuff I wanted to focus on. The stuff that I wanted to remember. The finished projects. The beautiful sunsets. Now I’m am seeing the blessings in my life more clearly and with more gratitude.
May God Bless you and your Family as you continue to share with us the goodness that is in your life.
Nancy Riendeau
http://www.ofwoolandloveliness.blogspot.com
Ginny, I hope you feel the love pouring into you from all the commenters who so appreciate your blog and your family. I’m so glad you write and share photos. Although we’ll never know each other in real life, you feel like a precious daughter to me. Thank you.
Dear Jan, your words always mean so much to me. Thank you so, so much. Love, Ginny
ever since i found your blog i have been inspired by your honest voice, your beautiful photographs and your willingness to put yourself out there. your a great photographer, so of course your pictures will be beautiful (it doesn’t hurt that you have so many lovely subjects). on another blog i read, she said she posts the loveliness of her days to remind herself that there is always beauty in her day, even the really bad ones.
keep doing what you are doing. oh, and BTW jonny is very handsome. lol
I’m sorry that this kind of thing is happening to may dear blogs I read. It even happened once, I found out that some people was discussing my life openly in Twitter in a disrespectful way, but I love coming here and read you and see your pictures, thank you for sharing.
As you yourself wrote, unfounded judgments or commentary are part & parcel of keeping a blog. But, that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t hurt to read such comments. I’m sorry anyone hurt your feelings. My favorite thing about reading your posts is how genuine your writing is and how candid your photos are.
And, you can tell Johnny that I speak French fluently so if you like, you can send me the link, I’ll register and leave comments that include “handsome husband” is every way I can think of in French. Or, anything else you would like.
Bonjour,
I am so sorry about the judgemental comments of my fellow countrywomen… Please apologize them !
Yours pictures are inspiring and we fell your spirit in them, your faith ^^.
French people loves to gossip and speaks a lot without matter !
Thank you for your blog.
A bientôt peut être,
Cécile 🙂
P.S. : If you need a translation, I can help you.
Dear Cecile, Thank you so much for your words! I truly appreciate them. Love, Ginny
I love your blog! I visit from the west coast every morning. It brings me cheer and joy to see your lovely family and what you are up to and inspires me to live a more simpler and joyful life with my own family. I liked what one commenter said, “chin up”- from Charlotte’s Web. You have a wonderful thing here with so many of us who genuinely care. Keep writing and keep taking pictures!!!
Honey, I just love reading (and looking!) at your posts nearly every day. You just never-mind those others. Those who come here regularly know a good thing when we see it!
I am a little upset with this post (well the beginning) and I am not sure why, except that you had to defend yourself for no apparent reason? I understand why you felt like you had to speak up but not sure why you had to defend yourself for being the mother that you are and why you live the life that you do?? I am sure you felt attacked but why did you feel attacked? I hope you understand this comment I guess I feel like you Shouldn’t have to defend yourself you are living the life that you and your husband chose “So What” if it bothers other people half way around the world:) I love reading your blog about your children, knitting, homeschooling, lifestyle. I don’t see it as stage although I do wonder how you do it all;)
Please don’t let others bring you down Be the light that God wants you to shine!!!!!
~~Renee
Dear Renee, I think I do understand where you are coming from. I didn’t actually feel attacked, just misunderstood in a way that I feared would hurt other women. You know, I debated over whether or not I would publish this post, but felt like if there was one mama out there feeling inadequate because she had fallen into the comparison trap, that it would be worth putting this out there. I didn’t want to defend so much as to explain and to present a genuine picture of our life. I hope that makes sense!! Thanks so much for your kindness here! Love, Ginny
your blog is wonderful I read every day. I have never thought anything negative about it. Why would anyone come and read if it was all miserable stuff. We tend to blog on the positives rather than dwell on the not so perfect parts of our life. Maybe you should throw in a few more negatives to make everyone happy. I for one would rather read and see all about your life the way you say it. Keep it up.
Chin up, as Charlotte tells Wilbur. You do an amazing blog. Sometimes, I don’t have time to read , but I still come by and look at your beautiful pictures, they make me THAT happy.
That’s one of my least favorite things about blogging. Like you, I like to focus on the good. But it does lead to a lot of false assumptions, and it makes me so squirmy and uncomfortable when people, even intending it as a compliment, say, “Oh, but your life is so perfect!” I never know what to say, so I mumble something about piles of laundry and try to change the subject quickly.
At any rate, I love your blog, just as it is. I’m sure you’re not perfect, because none of us are, but I love that–even in your non-perfect life–you find joy and beauty and love to celebrate each day.
We don’t know each other but from what I gather we are very different and also very alike. Regardless, I read your posts almost daily because you are real and honest and I enjoy what you publish. You do include the bad along with the good but you choose to dwell on the good. Who wants to dwell on the bad? Kudos to you, your family, and you very handsome husband (I have a Jonny of my own, actually). Chin up and God bless.
Bonjour,
Je suis désolée, je ne parle pas anglais mais je tenais à mettre un commentaire. Je suis navrée que vous ayez été blessée par les commentaires de mes compatriotes.
J’ai découvert, moi aussi, votre blog par le biais de ce site français. Je voulais juste vous dire que j’apprécie beaucoup vos photos.
Bien amicalement
Your blog is a beauty to behold, I enjoy each and every post. I will never ever tire of Silas’s pout.
Ginny,
I understand. I really understand. But the reality is that what brings me back her day after day is both – it is the beauty of your photographs and the honesty of your voice. My goal as a writer and a photographer is to make the ordinary beautiful. You do that everyday.
Sending love.
I love visiting your blog and am always inspired by your beautiful pictures. Your’s is a place where I can come and “breathe” for a minute. I would say that is pretty “real”, wouldn’t you, LOL. I’ve got the messes and the tons of work here, and visiting a blog like yours reminds me to stop and look for the amazing in my everyday life.
So thank you for sharing
Shonni
Your porch looks like our garage! I’m so sad about what you’ve come across on this French site. I’ve never found your blog to come across in a bad way, always down to earth and friendly 🙂 Gorgeous photos of Silas and the cat by the way…how do you get him to be so gentle?! Keep doing what you’re doing Ginny x
Hi Carly!
Regarding being gentle, do you mean the cat or Silas? Actually that cat is named Silas too, so this could get really confusing. The cat is gentle because he always has been. Silas (the baby) has been taught to be gentle. Gentle is actually one of the few words he says. The moment that he stops being gentle, he is reminded of how to be gentle, and if he isn’t, we just remove him from the situation. It’s simple but effective because he loves getting to pet the cats and our dog Trudy. Love, Ginny
Dear Ginny,
I follow many bloggers who I don’t know personally, including you, but I feel so honored to be a regular visitor on your page. Thanks for your inspiration and the beauty you share with us so often. Here is a giant cyberspace hug from one of your many fans. Carry on!
ginny, i love your blog precisely because it is so much more real or multi-faceted than many blogs out there. i can’t tell you how heartening it is that you come here and share both the beautiful and the zany. you make me laugh with your stories and your pictures of your children with marker on their faces, you bring me peace and inspiration with your creativity, and you make me catch my breath with the beauty of your photographs. i think you have an amazing eye and aesthetic as a photographer, and my guess is that is people are responding to that in their own unique, imperfect way when they look at your photographs and decide that your life is perfect. any photographer, even an amateur, knows how much work it takes to find the beautiful and filter out the chaos when taking a photograph, but a person who doesn’t have much experience taking photos might not understand that and therefore might read yours the wrong way. on top of that, i can only imagine what might have been lost in translation for a french person viewing but not really reading your posts. often, you share beautiful photographs alongside text about what is challenging you that day or week, so someone viewing but not reading might miss that. i love that you have that balance here–the beautiful alongside the difficult–and i can’t tell you what peace and reassurance it brings me.
jonny has made amazing progress on the bathroom! i hope that it will be finished sooner than you think. i love the pants for silas. i really need to sit down at my sewing machine and get some pants made for my daughter too. the chilly weather finally blew in this week!
That stinks. Honestly, I have always been struck by the spirit of humility that shines through your words and pictures, because of how real they are. Especially when Beatrix is covered in paint and her hair is fluffed up! lol. Personally, seeing those pictures has made me braver, especially when it comes to my kids creating stuff in my home. (Does Beatrix know that she’s freeing mothers everywhere??:) Your kids are so cute)
Never have I gotten a condescending, look-how-perfect-my-life-is tone from this blog. I would not keep visiting here every day if that were the case. And honestly? My home is about the size of yours. And everytime I’ve been tempted to think that it’s too small, I have thought of you and your family, and felt like if you can do it, so can we..(and by that I don’t mean simply “putting up with” our home. I mean really loving it and appreciating what we have, as you seem to do so well). And you know why I’ve thought of you in those moments? Because you’ve mentioned the reality of your space on your blog so many times that I remembered. So here’s to you for keepin it real! Carry on, Warrior:)
Dear Heather, I love that–the idea of Beatrix freeing mothers everywhere!!! Thank you! She has certainly helped me to loosen up. I haven’t had a choice!! love, Ginny
Dear Ginny, have I ever commented here before? I am ashamed to confess probably not. But still– I have been here, faithfully, every morning, loving and learning from your kind words and the beauty you see and share. I am not Catholic but Baha’i, yet the faith and love that so clearly affects all you do is a source of comfort and joy to me as well. I think that any of us who have ventured into the world of blogging have experienced these strange moments of vulnerability and misinterpretation. I can only hope that the good you receive will far outweigh the disconcerting. You certainly deserve as much for the generosity you show in sharing your most precious work with us. I read your words and soak in your pictures with gratitude.
it’s always a shock to find yourself under a microscope.
i stopped writing at my blog-space for a while because the microscope was very local and really intrusive; just saying that to say this: i understand how it feels.
but please know, i am so very blessed by your words and your photographs, and i appreciate what you share. thank you.
and really? thank you for not showing runny noses. i am quite familiar with the concept. ew.
I think one of the things that I notice most about your blog is that you ARE very real and don’t put up any pretense or airs. Argh. People are just plain dumb sometimes (self included). I am SO. VERY. TIRED. of this idea that if you don’t air out all your grievances and complaints publicly that you therefore must think you are perfect or that you are deviously trying to hide faults. Ridiculous. How about the crazy idea that people are just trying to live gratefully and joyfully?
Ginny, your blog is a blessing. Completely. Thank you for sharing so much with us and for literally changing lives for the better. God bless your beautiful family!!
Mary
I think it’s human nature to form judgements, and naturally they are going to be relative to the viewer. The fact your photos ended up in that venue is nothing but a tremendous compliment. Think of all the famous artwork that goes on display through the ages. Art does so many things for people, it provides beauty and contemplation over and over again. The responses you will get from an art viewer will change over time, reflective of their mood, their moment and place in the world. Like all the great artists of this world, your work has made a global contribution to humanity. It really doesn’t matter what someone says. The fact you have the courage to share is one of God’s gifts you are giving us. Thank you. If a comment bothers you, let it go out into the universe and dissipate. You just helped somebody get over a bad mood, etc. And let all the positive comments be a reminder of the gift you have given, in making room for a calm, peaceful and beautiful place in the world.
I hope you don’t get too discouraged or stressed about this. I wanted to echo some of the earlier comments with saying that I too enjoy how beautifully real your photographs are. You are very talented in photography and so take much better pictures than I but they’re still just ‘normal’ children in them. I love to see our little girls with marker on their faces or hair unbrushed because it shows the happiness of childhood. I must confess I do sometimes look at your pictures and thing I’d like to live your life but I must remind myself that the ‘grass is always greener’ and somedays you may think the same thing about me. Probably what most people envy you most for is your positive attitude during the daily mishaps 🙂
Please keep up the daily stories!
Stay true to your heart and vision, despite the petty vicissitudes of opinion!
I admire the honest peek at your lives that you share. I always feel inspired by what you share. Your blog helps me to keep perspective on my life. When I was younger, the teachers always said ” if you can’t say something nice don’t say anything at all”…..I think a lot of people have list that art. Thanks for sharing & keeping it real !
well i think jonny is handsome, and oh silas. don’t worry honey, try to let this go. 🙂
What I love most about your blog is how real you are! I never get the feeling that you are putting on or staging things to look perfect like some bloggers do. Your pictures are certainly beautiful, but they also reflect a real mama with real kids. Carry on – you’re doing a beautiful job 🙂
Oh Ginny you know opinions are like…. nevermind. Well I’m sure you get my drift. Everyone’s got one. I’ve known you my whole life, while I’m jealous of how well you carry the load that you do, I know that you to have times when you just want to scream because things aren’t always rosey. After all you are only human. Really who in their right mind wants to show their flaws all over the internet..a seldom few. I know that I pick which photos we look best in to post of my whole family, and try to avoid the messes in a photo as well. Who cares?!?!?! Weak minded people give weak minded thoughts and opinions. Normally when people act like that it’s because of their own insecurities. Your written part of your blog details the different struggles, messes, etc. you deal with. You took it all in and now throw it all out. Don’t spend another minute worrying about all that. I love you guys and YA’LL ROCK!!!!!
That is sad. I hate that you had to go through that kind of judgement by people who don’t know you or even necessarily what you are trying to say. After all, pretty pictures make a blog visually beautiful, but it is the words pouring forth from the person that make a blog real. It is the emotion, the faith, the joy, the journey that we all come back here to read about. If they wanted to somehow brand you as a religious fanatic, please don’t let that distract you. I love hearing people of faith speak about it as it should be – what grounds us and gives us strength through the ups and downs of life. As a Catholic, it is all too easy to find criticism of our faith. Just plug the word Catholic into the Google line and the items that populate are never positive. I love that I can find real and loving Catholicism on display here. Not perfect, real. Thank you for your blog. Thank you for putting yourself out there.
Tell that “handsome husband” that he is most handsome when he is doing awesome home renovations! Great work Johnny!
Now about all this business of folks being critical, I’m sorry for them. Those of us who follow your blog hear of your struggles which mirror our own. That is why we come back to this space. You are us, we are you. We love to see that dispite irritations and sorrows that you choose to focus on the beauty and joy of life. And right now the main beauty in your life is your children, as it should be. By choosing to focus on the beauty and goodness in our lives we reduce negativity and irritation. Why would you choose to focus on everything that is wrong in life? That would just make you and the world more miserable. And really, there is already plenty of misery in this world, thank you! Keep doing what you are doing, your blog is a joy and comfort. Thanks for sharing your beautiful life with us.
I love, love, love the male perspective! Well done, Jonny!
I know. I would be miserable without him. His perspective is priceless.
Funny thing – what I have loved about your blog this past year…is that you do seem ordinary – in the very best sense of the word. Ordinary, like I wish we were neighbours. Other blogs I read seem like a fairy tale…there’s no way I can relate. Your blog has always felt very honest and authentic, and funny. Chalk it up to bad translation…and if you lived up here in the Canadian Rockies, I’d bake you a pie and bring it over along with my current knitting project I’m struggling with. 🙂
Dear Ginny,
I’ve been reading your blog for almost a year now, plus some “background” posts here and there, and one of the things I’ve always felt about your writing is that you try to show grace even when things aren’t going that well. Maybe someone who can’t read your words may feel diferently but that’s not what your blog is saying. Now what I really appreciate about your blog (I’m guessing that’s the way you are) and try to learn from is to try keeping good humour even when daily life is a mess; when things fail, try to look at the brighter side. That’s not pretending or putting a stage. It is being a good sport.
I’d like to thank you for sharing so much of your life and family with us. It has been a pleasure to read.
Wow, I am always so saddened that people continue to judge others and put them down, how sad they must be to do that to another person. I love visiting here and usually leave with a smile after seeing your beautiul family and reading your words. I have always found your blog to be ‘real’ and I think you show often that life isn’t perfect, but with Grace, it’s a good life. I have come to think of you, Jonny and your children as dear friends that mean quite a lot to me and I am thankful that you continue in this space. Much love.
Good for you, Ginny! of course, you know, most of your readers just adore your photos and words alike, and for me, being only 19 years old, I just love reading your blog as a place of artistic inspiration and motivation and also a place of creative family life and love that we can all take life inspiration from.
I like reading your blog just because I find it both inspiring and genuine!
I would type what I would say if we were in the same room, but without the necessary tone attached the words would take on entirely different meaning. Which is one of the problems with blogging, the necessary feeling doesn’t always come through. I’m sorry you feel attacked. I would too. I think you know that your readers “know you” well enough to know you aren’t passing yourself off as perfect.
Forget about it and have a great day.
I think that your blog is lovely and that you don’t at all come off as one of those “perfect” people who edit their lives for public. You are genuine and that is what is so appealing about your blog. I dislike that when in groups, people quickly become judgy and make all kinds of assumptions rather than leaving their hearts and minds open.
I’m sorry you had to go through that. The internet is a strange place sometimes. For what it’s worth, I enjoy your blog, even though some parts of our lives are very different, and I love that so many great people can bond together over knitting. I admire that you seem to use this space to find gratitude for the simple pleasures in even the not-so-great days and that’s something that we all can do. Keep on keeping on and thanks for being here.