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I’ve been writing this blog for seven years! I get closer every day to 400 published articles, which is truly insane considering it’s just a hobby I do to keep my writing muscles toned and to collect my thoughts, attempting to understand this crazy, complicated world we live in.
Over those years there have been a lot of ups and downs in my posts. I’ve excitedly jotted down musings on the interesting and memorable things happening in my life. And I’ve shared my thoughts on the utterly inane.
A Wide Variety of Topics
But without intention to offend, I’ve also gotten into a fair amount of tense moments because of the things I’ve chosen to write about. In seven years, I have only taken down one post, due to backlash after airing out some personal family dirty laundry. And I’ve watched people unsubscribe, unfriend me on Facebook, or aggressively argue with me about topics as diverse as my thoughts on mandatory Covid vaccinations to my opinion of Shakespeare being forced upon our kids in school.
I’d like to say off the bat: I never aim to upset or offend anyone. In my youth, I didn’t mind being provocative. I enjoyed watching others get emotional or irritated because of things I said. But now it stings a little. I prefer when people are fond of me, and I think it’d be great if I could retain all the friends I’ve amassed over the years.
Yet I can’t help but think of the exciting moment when the infamous Conor McGregor became the first double champion in UFC history. He exclaimed, “And I’d just like to say from the bottom of my heart, I’d like to take this chance to apologize… to absolutely nobody!”
You see, whereas I don’t like upsetting or offending people, I recognize it as inevitable. I try my hardest to not be bothered by this fact. And knowing that changes nothing about what I’m going to say or do.
And Sometimes I Offend People…
I see the risk of offending others as an essential part of my process. No, not intentionally. I’m never going to write a post thinking to myself excitedly about all the people I will upset that day.
But sometimes I know it’s coming. And to be completely honest, sometimes I’m entirely blindsided. Or I expect a more mixed reaction to things I say. Although a lot can be learned by each and every situation. For example, I wrote about the murder of Brian Thompson. My basic premise was we shouldn’t shoot people. People could disagree with you. They can even do things you think are harmful or immoral. But under no circumstances is the right response to walk over to someone and gun them down in the middle of the street.
I wrote that article thinking, “Duh, who’s going to disagree with this? Am I just preaching to the choir? Who in my life is going to advocate for shooting people to accomplish their political or social agendas?”
But I was wrong. Quite wrong.
And not only was I wrong, but those who agreed with me remained silent.
There’s a message there. My guess is those who loathed this man and what he stood for were significantly more passionate about the matter than those who believe steadfastly in the rule of law. But whether or not that’s the underlying message, there definitely is one. There’s always something new to be learned.
I Write for Me
It always needs to be remembered: I write this blog for me.
What does that mean?
Yeah, of course I would like to influence thousands of people with my pearls of wisdom. I’d like to innovate thoughts and ideas, and be quoted by people across the world. And I’d love if my blog was somehow pulling in thousands of dollars a day. I’d love to wake up one morning and see that dozens of posts went viral, people clicked on hundreds of affiliate links and weird banner images and bought my books and my assorted designs and photos, and that day would be one where money would be no object. A roadmap to a worry-free life!
But those are just dreams and aspirations. If I were writing for the masses, I would do everything differently. Very differently. I know more than enough to create intrigue and pull in readership. But that’s not why I’m here.
I’m here to process the world. Every time I write something, I feel I understand the topic ever-so-slightly more than before I wrote. I’m a step closer to the wisdom I seek. When my fingers hit a keyboard, something happens in my heart. I begin to see things differently. Sometimes more clearly. Or sometimes I can better feel my lack of clarity.
And even that is a step in the right direction!
We Might Butt Heads
One can never become wise through arrogantly assuming to understand things. Wisdom can only be gained through pushing yourself past your limits.
I am not here to offend anyone. But sometimes I will. And as much as I love you all, the time might come when we butt heads over my words. We might feel a certain level of pain in our relationship.
It’s not fun.
But it’s a necessary evil on the path to a very important goal.
So what I’m saying is: In seven years of writing this blog, I have never typed a single word intended to offend anyone. I don’t wish to insult or alienate people. But at the same time, I’m not trying to avoid it either.
Why?
Argue… then Beer
Because one can’t find truth, knowledge, clarity, or anything valuable in this world whilst hiding behind the need to be careful. While weighing every word that comes out of our mouths.
We’re in a weird situation at this time in history, and I truly hope to see things turn around in my lifetime. People are afraid to talk, and it’s terribly unhealthy.
I hope for a world where actions matter more than words. And one where I can say something without fear or hesitation, because that’s just how conversations are. We’re not looking to hurt one another. And we know it! Our aim is to simply talk, and even though our words might occasionally crash into one another, it’s just a necessary part of flushing out our understanding of things.
And when we’re finished talking, no matter how intense things get, we then grab a beer together.
Because that’s just the way it is.
