NaBloPoMo 2015, Day 1 Why?

As I embark on this journey again I'm asking myself why. Why do I do this every year? Why am I doing it again? What do I gain from NaBloPoMo?

I have done it in the past to remember my voice in our community. I have been given a unique voice in this community. We all have. I may not be a social activist blogger, speaking up for injustices around me; nor am I a guru in some specialty; but I am a unique voice and my voice matters. Someone needs to hear what I write, whether they comment on it or not. Your voice matters too. Someone is out there waiting to hear your words about your life and they will identify with it. There is power in the "Me too!".

I participate every year as an exercise in dedication. My day to day life might be crazy and unpredictable but sticking to something for 30 days is doable. Some days we have more to say than others, but 30 days is doable. Short or long, it's applying myself to sit down and reflect on a topic, to share a piece of me with you. This year I will also drop Facebook. (I'm vowing to only check fb 1x/day and use that wasted time to devote to writing and other things that I need to be doing.) Changing or shifting priorities, even for a time, can be a highly effective self-teaching tool.

I'm doing it again this year because I have so many tales from this year that I have put off writing down. I have so many things that I want to share and rather than not saying anything at all, I'm committing to getting them off my chest. From my classes at church last winter and spring, to summer stories, and personal triumphs, I've been wanting to tell you so much but haven't. Why? Probably because I'm lazy, but for this month I'm committing to telling them. You'll probably get a few days of pictures too, but I'm committing to telling my stories from this year.

I always prove to myself that I get so much out of blogging. I regain my sense of community. I fine-tune my writing voice. I connect (or reconnect!,) with bloggers that I admire and love. My mind begins to work more creatively. Producing something of worth is something we as humans desire to do, and during November, for me, it's producing a body of work of writing out my thoughts, feelings, and sharing things that I otherwise might not share.

So why will you do it? Do you need to connect? Do you have a story that you are compelled to share? There are a million reasons to do it, but only one is needed. Yours. We'll be reading.