This is my 50th post for this blog. For me, this is monumental. I started this blog on July 4th with a post about my brother’s hobby farm. I remember going out to his place at the beginning of July and taking pictures, asking him questions. He didn’t know I was interviewing him for my first post.

I didn’t expect to accomplish much with this blog. No financial outcome expected. No new relationships expected. But this blog has brought me a lot of joy and through my work with it, I have found other bloggers that I am genuinely interested in.  My favorite is a blogger from Canada who writes about her family life.

Her name is Janelle and over the course of four months she has come to mean a lot to me, even though she probably doesn’t know it. Her writing has a calming effect on me, her pictures are thoughtful and her words, well, they are quotable. She strives for a meaningful relationship with her God, her husband, and her family. She reaches out to others with her faith, with caring, and with friendship. And this is only what I have seen through her blog.

Bloggers are an interesting sort. What I have found about those bloggers who write about their personal lives, is that they long to connect with others, they want to help others, to inspire, to heal, to encourage. Blogging, I have found that the world is small. I have been reacquainted with the good in people. I have been reminded that the human race really is a wondrous species. Janelle, and her blog, My Men and Me, has reminded me of all these things. There have been times I have been discouraged, tired, depressed . . . though she probably never knew, Janelle wrote nearly every day, and her posts were always encouragement to me. They often rejuvenated me. She fearlessly writes about her relationship with God, and in those posts, I am inspired to continue into a deeper commitment in my own relationship with God. She writes with great love about her family, and she concentrates on the simple things that enrich her life. This, alone, is calming for me, as it is something that I strive for: to be able to always remember the simple things in life, and to be thankful for them.

Janelle has become a sort of mentor to me in the course of these past four months. And I am thankful for that. The blogging world opens up new things that you might never have expected. You should try it if you have any inclination to write and to share with others. And I encourage you to check out Janelle’s blog. You will be glad you did.