NOTE: This is not intended to be negative, nor are these thoughts directed at any one party.
God has graciously given us the gift of the INTERNET. Along with this gift come some amazing features, two of which are: EMAIL and BLOGGING
Now, my purpose here is twofold:
1) I desire to remind you of the advantages of email.
2) I hope to give a different purpose and mission to "C" Roth Blog
(I may fail in both goals, but it is worth a try)
EMAIL
Email is a wonderful thing...it allows you to communicate privately with another person quickly and efficiently without picking up the phone. However, there is one very important requirement: If the person with which you are hoping to communicate never checks their email...you can forget the quick and efficient part.
See this quote from of an official definition of email:
"Sent messages are stored in electronic mailboxes until the recipient fetches them."
The fetching must be done. Ok? You have to hold up your end of the deal.
The other great thing about email is that you can email one or more people all at the same time. You know how this works, you get those annoying forwards all of the time...sent to 10000000 people telling you that they are the best friend of the person that forwarded this email and that if you don't send it to all of your 10000000 best friends, well...you will probably slip on some ice and bust your butt wide open (or something ridiculous like that). Anyway, the advantage is real, nonetheless, you can send it to multiple people. By the way, do you know what the CC and BCC lines are for? (that is extra credit)
So...my point for explaining this is to help remind you that all of our family members that use the blog each have their own personal email addresses. I can send you a list if you would like. Use those things...they are great. Also...if you would like to take advantage of some more great technology...you should sign up for Google Mail. (otherwise known as Gmail). Caleb and I use this a lot to chat during the day. It is pretty neat.
BLOG
This blog has been such a blessing to me and I know to many of you. It has served us well for over a year now as we have sought to keep in touch with one another's lives. PRAISE GOD!!!
Well, I want to challenge you all try another approach to this blogging thing. I have in my mind the thought that this blog could serve as more of a discussion tool than an email tool. I mean, we could certainly still say hello to one another and a talk about what insane thing happened to us today...but I am hoping that the POSTS will serve as thought provokers that will then spark some discussion among the brethren and sisteren and motheren and fatheren. Do you know what i mean? This means that Clair, Tina, Cita, Chuck, Cary, Amanda, Caleb, April, Sally, Curtis, Lauren, Mom and Dad will all have to be willing to POST. In order to post...you would simply email me (as we spoke about above) and I will have to "fetch" the email and then post it on the blog. At that point all of the family could interact based on that POST. It serves as a talking point. If Caleb wants to talk about University of Wisconsin sports, well we can all join in and tell him how much we love UT. If Cita wants to share with us about her latest Tastefully Simple item, that is what we will talk about. I really believe that this will serve us all as we seek to KNOW one another better. Does this make sense? It will kind of shift the focus of the blog to be talking about each other's lives and focusing on someone else other than ourselves. It will take discipline and it will take time. But i think it will serve us all. The schedule for posting will follow shortly. I will do my best to hold you accountable. If you wish to not participate...well...ummm...hmmm...not sure what to say about that. I love you, though, that's for sure.
I love you all...
Tell me if you think I am absolutely ridiculous and idealistic and all of that...
I have my tendencies toward that direction.
cwjr
2cor8.9
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2 comments:
WOW! Such a great admonition from the Clifblogmeister. I trust we will all do our best to stay on topic and bring uplifting conversation we can all identify with. By the way as much as I love U of Wisconsin (liberal though they be) I’m still quite loyal to U of Tennessee and will be rooting for them as I watch them play Ohio State on Thursday night. I’m sure Mom will be watching. I remember the NCAA tourney being one of her favorites to watch. I specifically remember her watching the year Christian Laettner made the last second shot to win it for Duke. Well, didn’t mean to get too off topic there. Anyway, I’m looking forward to our newer format here on the blog as well as some deadlines for getting those postings on. I hope we will all stay current with the conversation.
One note concerning email – I rarely get those mass emails anymore, y’know, like the ones Clif mentioned that if you don’t send to everyone in your address book your belly button will fall off. Whenever I would get them, especially the rumor/urban legend ones I would always look them up on www.snopes.com and try to debunk the myth – which they usually were – and then I’d send the link to everyone who it had been sent to. After doing that about 10 or so times they stopped coming – weird! (I’d like to think that they stopped for everyone else too but that is probably wishful thinking.) I still get some of the funny ones - which are fine. Aunt Chris just sent me one that was kind of funny; although I really prefer ones where the person sending it specifically knows that I will think what they are sending is funny. When I send those out I usually hand select from my list rather than just sending it to everyone. I find that also helps me think of people I haven’t spoken or written to in a while and maybe I’ll write them a short note as well. When it comes to e-mail staying current with those writing you is the challenge. They get buried so easily in the inbox that sometimes you forget to respond if you don’t do it right away. I’ll second Clif on encouraging folks to sign up with Gmail! I’m so glad to be rid of my Juno accounts! Hope I was able to add some helpful insights here as we continue the conversation. Hey, is it okay to throw in a quick Happy Birthday to Cary here? Hope so – HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARY! I LOVE YOU! (whisper: I need to get a current e-mail address for you. I’ll e-mail Clif later.)
Well didn't you all think Clif's admonition about the emailing versus blogging was good! Funny to me. As his wife, I laugh often about his abilities to stay "current" and "with the times". And while I am not the type of person who really cares at all if I'm "current". . . I'm really glad that Clif does care! Sometimes I laugh amused and thankful for the variety he brings to my life and other times I become annoyed and wonder why he always has to try the new flavor of gum or chips instead of just getting the old kind that is tried and true.
I agree that an effort to ask questions about what a person writes about will be a good discipline of showing true interest in each other.
I've learned that it takes strategy and effort to draw others out. If you don't take the time and effort you will merely skim the surface of who they are, and then, it's truly both people who miss out terribly. The one is never known, and the other remains too self-focused to ever experience the joy truly knowing someone.
Apart from family that is far away, we've even experienced the "daily report on life, including no interesting or skilled conversation" in our own house. . . One part of me is tempted to believe that it's just the way it is. The mundane is here. But then there is this other part that just refuses! We are called to love one another with a kind of love that causes those who do not follow Christ to notice!!! We must become skilled at relating well. We must have quality conversations with our husbands and wives and children. And if we struggle with that, we must pray and ask God for the wisdom and strength that we need.
So, I like Caleb am looking forward to this new season on the family blog.
Love you all! Looking forward to seeing many of you this weekend!
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