My First Blog!

Hello World!

I'm starting a blog!  Over the past few years, I have loved reading blogs.  I have gotten countless ideas for recipes, outfits, how to do my hair and make up as well as encouragement, empathy, inspiration, and of course some laughs.  I so enjoy reading about the things bloggers are loving and learning.  I love hearing that perfect strangers both appreciate and struggle with the same things I do.  I also love how blogs are a way to chronicle the every day moments of life.  It's a like the scrapbook or photo album for the 21st century (that is if you aren't counting Instagram!).

There have been many times when I considered starting a blog, but I quickly dismissed it because I felt like no one would want to hear what I had to say.  It could be true, no one could care, but I want to do this for me!  I want to create a place where I can reflect and collect memories and share the things I am loving and learning.  It's a little scary, but I hope to take baby steps and just start becoming comfortable with this space.

Another reason why I want to do this is for the students I will be teaching in the Fall.  I teach a freshman seminar class at the University of South Carolina and I recently went to a conference that covered various topics on how to have a successful and meaningful class.   At one of the breakout sessions, the speaker shared how she had her class create blogs.  When I heard that I realized this was the perfect opportunity to start a blog myself and have some accountability to keep up with it each week along with my students.

I also really liked the idea of giving the students a more modern place to reflect on what they are learning and experiencing during their freshman year and hopefully beyond.  At our university, the importance of reflection has really been emphasized and those of us who work directly with students have been encouraged to incorporate opportunities for reflection after significant experiences.

I love the idea of reflection, but it does not come easy for me.  I definitely like the idea of reflection, but often downplay it, thinking I'm wasting time because I'm not "doing" anything or producing something.  I am hoping this space will encourage me to grow in reflecting on the moments in my life regardless of how major or mundane they may seem.

So here goes nothing!  Welcome to my world! :)