past TEN THOUSAND! and counting..

Oh my giddy aunt I have passed 10000 visits to my blog. Ta da! That is amazing to me. When I began this blog in May 2007 it was to continue the journal I had begun while in Fez. On my last extended trip to India I had kept the experiences and memories by constantly writing to Q, but this trip I have her with me, so I had to address someone unknown which is never as much fun as telling the stories to someone. I had no knowledge of the Blog World, and no idea at the richness, variety, and depth of the people and offerings contained within. It has allowed me a view into the lives of people as varied as Mutleythedog to I Beatrice, with talents as far flung as Dulwichmum and rilly super to pig in the kitchen, and omega mum. I am amazed at the depth of knowledge of the political bloggers, Ellee Seymour to Iain Dale, and the breath of knowledge and variety of topics explored at Nourishing Obscurity to Sicily Scene and The land of Sand. Hearing the views from the other side of the pond from lordnash, Blooming Marvelous, and wake up and smell the coffee has been enlightening. I have gone along for the ride with Nobody Important to Alaska, and taken a long hike and gone skinny dipping with Sally in Norfolk. Family life at its funniest and warmest can be found at Mountain Mama, ‘Twas Brillig, the zen of motherhood, and Pass the Chocolate. On My Wee Scottish Blog I read about the bringing up of Bambi and the travels of her continent hopping parents, while Sparx keeps me in stitches with tales of the Spud. I have learned so much as well, from the heartache of infertility beautifully told at Coming 2 Terms and Upon Awakening to the power of stay-at-home-dads at the aptly named Stay at home Dad and the often hysterical and always delightful darth sardonic. Mutterings and Meanderings keeps me up with the horsy set, and Long Way Home tells me what my child is up to that day. I go to drunk mummy for wine recommendations and to Better oot than In for a laugh on almost any subject. These and many other bloggers amaze with their talent for writing, their zeal for living, their ability to see the humorous and the absurd, and their courage in facing personal trauma and everyday life. The Blog World is indeed a phenomenon, and one I am thrilled to be part of, if indeed only a small part.

I never expected more than a few people to even find my blog let alone read it every day, but thanks to James, global voices online, expat interviews and some other wonderful cyber friends who found my blog and spread the word, I now have over 10000 visitors in three months. I have been honored and made to feel special by what Lost in the Bible Belt called a “list of awards as long as your arm” given me by my fellow bloggers. Directly from the writings in my blog have come two writing assignments and hopefully a future non-fiction book.

I am a storyteller. I always have been, but then I am a Highland Scot and that’s what we do around the campfire, the fireplace, or the heather. It is however, as I have learned, a long way from the fire to the written word on the page. I aspire to be a writer, but I am with Mickey Spillane on this one – I don’t want to spend my time writing if no one is going to read it. I want to write so to make people laugh, and cry, and most of all hope. If I can make people see the world around them in terms of everyone in the world around them, if I can pass on what it’s like to feel the pain of loss, the joy of creation, the bliss and despair of love, the serenity of compassion, and the power of random acts of kindness I will be well pleased. I want to write stories that readers will want to share with their friends, and perhaps even their enemies. Having a forum such as this to flex my writing muscles is a daily step toward those goals. The fact that over 10000 times people have chosen to read what I write is encouraging. I know there are blogs that have numbers to make me blush, but I am working on it!

I want to say thank you to every person who has taken the time, and made the effort to read my tales of life in Morocco, rants from my soapbox, and my opining on everything from education to proper bra fittings. The comments that so many of you take the time and effort to leave are true conversations with friends. Even on my most difficult days, I look forward to checking for the comments from that day. You have made me happy, and I appreciate that. I really, really enjoy being happy! I don’t have champagne and balloons for this one, but just you wait until I hit 100,000.

Thank you for coming by.
Ciao