Well, hello. I haven't checked into this space in a while. It's not for lack of trying, but I admit it has been a struggle to keep up this work-life-baby balance. Most days, I prioritize any extra minutes of sleep I can sneak in.
Briefly, since last time, there's been a lot of just daily life, a trip to Portland (evidence above) and even a trip to Johannesburg, South Africa.
There's so much I want to write in this space. At the same time, I've often thought about shutting down this blog. I started it nearly five years ago, at a time when I thought it was important to document the mental and emotional preparation for a big move abroad. And I'm so glad I did. Blogging forced me to take stock of both the small and big moments in the past five years, colors, shapes and emotions I would have strained to remember today. Through this space, I can remember what it felt like the first day I stepped foot in Phnom Penh, the cacophony of motorbikes, and the gravity of the idea, slowly settling on me, that this dusty city would be my home. I can recall the first moments I realized I loved this strange international human rights thing - that feeling of having my heart on fire; the crescendo of emotion when I realized I fell in love with Ethan; our travels; our moves to Thailand and eventually back Stateside.
But I've been in DC for nearly two years! How?! And I'm not often inspired to document life here. Hah. That sounds horrible but it's the truth.
That's not entirely true. I am inspired to document M's life and motherhood, as I stumble along. I wonder, though, if this is the place to do it. Shouldn't I avoid pictures of her (like the one above) in the public domain? Does this make me a bad mother? I joke, but I'm somewhat serious.
I've thought about the same thing with sharing images of Severin. In a sense, it's too late as the cat's out of the bag, but I'm mindful about posting his photos on my blog. Five years is a long time, and blogging with a young child is tough (I've been up since 5.30 and, try as I might, I couldn't cajole S into sleeping a minute longer even though I could see he was tired). But it is a keepsake and an endeavor worth pursuing, particularly as sleep deprivation might cause you to forget certain moments.
ReplyDeleteGood point, Moya. Sleep deprivation will surely wipe some of these daily memories away. There's no question about it.
ReplyDeleteI also often wonder how my daughter will feel if, as an adult, she finds my blog. I don't know if blogger will exist years from now, but this space has captured an important five years in my life, and I guess I'd like my daughter to know.
ReplyDeleteHi Jocy!Oh my, I just wrote a comment and it didn't go through. I hear you on this!
ReplyDeleteI meant to reply to this earlier, but my two cents are that you started this blog to bring yourself joy and to give a sense of order to things that were happening in your life. As long as it's still doing those things for you, I hope you'll keep it up! Because it definitely brings *me* joy to see what your life is like these days, and to go with you on the occasional journey. But that said, anything that qualifies as a hobby should be fun - as soon as it becomes an obligation, it's out. At least in my book :) xox
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