This Is Me--2024 A to Z Theme

My A to Z Themes in the past have covered a range of topics and for 2024 the theme is a personal retrospective that I call "I Coulda Been" which is in reference to my job and career arc over my lifetime. I'll be looking at all sorts of occupations that I have done or could have done. Maybe you've done some of these too!

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

What Would You Do?

            What would you do if your written work was being posted on your blog on a regular basis and never got any comments?   What if you did not have any internet access to visit other blogs upon which to comment and open up the possibility of having them come back to visit your blog and comment on it?  What would you do if you wrote and wrote with the hopes of being read, but nobody ever read what you were saying?

              Most of us have options in our writing endeavors.  We may have different reasons why we write.  We may be seeking different results.   The fact remains that most of us can go to our computers whenever we want and write our own writings or go to the blogs of others to read what they have to say.  We can establish online friendships and communicate with one another.  We can seek advice or receive encouragement.  But what would you do if none of that were available to you and you could only write, hoping that eventually someone, somewhere might read and might have something to say to you?  Would you still write?

            There is a man by the name of Dan who has been writing for many years under just that circumstance.  He aspires to be published one day, but he does not have the same resources that most of us do.   He is in prison.  He has little contact with the outside world and is unsure how to get his writing outside of his world of confinement. 

             Recently, one of Dan's sisters encouraged him to start sending her some of his writing so she could start a blog for him.  He sends her several pieces at a time and she posts twice a week.  Sometimes he writes poetry or song lyrics while other times he contributes brief essays.  He yearns for his voice to be heard.  He would like someone to tell him what they think about his writing or just give a word of encouragement.

             A few weeks ago some of you may have received the following message from me:

There is a blogger out there who needs your encouragement more than most others do. He is a prison inmate who is attempting to have a voice. He has been writing for several years and would like someone to read what he has to say. He does not have internet access and his submissions must be posted by his sister, who in turn sends him comments for him to respond to. I hope you will at least take a look at his blog and then if you are moved to do so, leave a comment for him and follow his blog and tell others about it.

            I decided it would be easier to make a general post for all to read rather than try to send this to many people individually.  Some of you have already signed up to follow his blog and have been commenting.  If you are one of those I hope you will leave a comment here encouraging others to do the same.  Likewise, if you are just now reading this and would like to extend a kindness for another, perhaps you can link to this post on your blog so that others may see this or talk about it on your own blog.

            To alleviate any paranoid fears that some of you may have, remember Dan does not have internet access so he could not communicate directly with you.  His sister is a fine young lady who I'm sure would be more than happy to address any concerns that you leave in the comments of Dan's blog.  She screens everything before it gets to him.  I feel confident that communicating through his blog is totally safe and will not put you in any harm's way. 

            Please just look at his blog to give him a chance.   If you are willing, leave a comment.  And if you can, add your name as a follower.  Here are two sample posts that you might want to start with to give you an idea of who Dan is:

My Brother..... My Friend  --- This is a post from Dan's sister which will give a little more insight to the situation.

Please Allow Me To Introduce Myself -- this is Dan's introductory post


          Some of  you may want to read Matthew 25:31-46 to refresh your memory about what the Bible says about those in prison.  It's a small sacrifice.  I know that so many of you are like me and have a lot of blogs on your blog roll that you try to get to and time is so limited.  But Dan's posts are short and they are only twice a week.  Just a visit now and then I'm sure would be greatly appreciated.

          What would you do if it were a friend of yours, or a brother, a father, a relative, or one of your own children?  What would you do if it were you?   What will you do?  I hope you will at least leave a comment here to let me know how you feel about this.

            Thank you.

       

20 comments:

  1. i think that is really great of you to promote him. A writer should be heard. I'll go see.

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  2. I'm on my way now. Thanks for the links. Kat

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  3. Good day Lee, I know what it is like to blog continuously for a year without a single reply then out of the blue I had a comment , I was elated, I started blogging mainly so I could express my feelings rather than to keep telling my children how lonely and lost I felt without thier dad.
    Then I got over my grief to a certain extent and could write something humourous, I did read other blogs and commented but apart from this one particular lady none whatsoever, gradually things changed and I had a few followers, I don't know how I would feel in "Dan's" shoes one can only know through experience
    but your post brought it home to me, why>]? Well yesterday when the commenting department was having trouble for the first time in years I felt alone. so with that in mind I will click on the link to the person you were writing about.
    Have a nice day
    Yvonne,

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  4. How small a world we really have. I use to work for the Federal Prison system and can attest most inmates are merely humans with bad luck. I will check this out.

    Besides it wasn't a month ago when I was in the same boat. Like Yvonne I too was elated.

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  5. Thanks for the heads up. There's a little something for you at my blog.

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  6. Thank you for passing this on to me. Especially since I just wrote what I wrote. Another blessing in the blogging world.

    I think it's easy to get caught up in the popularity of blogging and forget about writing because there is something on our hearts that we want to share and hopefully be heard on. I do take for granted that I can log on anytime I want to, write whenever I want to and read whenever I want to.

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  7. I'm on Dan's blog. I think it's great that he's chosen to do something with his time in prison, and writing is a wonderful form of expression. His sister should be commended on giving up her time to share his words with others. I enjoy reading his blog and hearing what he has to say.

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  8. Lee, I think I've commented on every one of Daniel's posts since the blog began.

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  9. Wow. How do you find out about all of this? I will be checking what he has written. ANd the thing about commenting... I should get back to doing some of that. Have a nice day!
    -Wolfie

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  10. Arlee,

    I checked out both links and left comments. I'm touched by his siter's support and am glad to hear Dan has found a constructive outlet to the world where he can express himself and find meaning for his life.

    Stephen Tremp

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  11. R-LEE-B ~
    I'm glad you posted this, Brother! It should certainly bring a much larger readership to Dan and encourage him in his writing endeavors. Good move, Bro.

    Say, do you know wha's up with disappearing comments on this website? I've noticed that some I have posted have mysteriously disappeared, and some that had been posted by others to me on my own Blog Bits have also gone strangely missing. Like, is there a comments thief in our midst, or wha'?

    ~ "Lonesome Dogg" McD-Fens

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  12. Very thoughtful of you Arlee. I will definitely visit Dans blog. I remember how thrilled I was when someone first commented on my blog post even though I really never expected it. I was doing it for me after my first stroke. My daughter felt that I needed something relaxing that would force me to sit! I didn't even know what a blog was!
    Today I think that I actually enjoy reading what others have to say more than writing for myself. Everyone is so interesting! So yes I will hop on over and take a look see!
    Love Di ♥

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  13. Thank you for sharing this! For the first time in a while when discovering a new blog I went back to the archive and read through all the previous posts. My mind boggles at the perspectives someone like Dan has on our society, and over the fact that this very society rarely allows a voice like his be heard. I will definitely come back for more.

    As for putting myself in his sister's shoes - I don't know if I can imagine what I'd do. I can only hope I would be as supportive as she is.

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  14. I too have a brother who went to prison and had a lot of trouble getting his life back together. I'll check it out.

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  15. My thanks to all of you who looked at Dan's blog to give it a chance and especially those who left comments. I think most of us remember a time when we were posting and it didn't seem like anybody was reading what we wrote. At least we were able to get on blogger and comment on other blogs to find readership. I hope each of you might pass the info about Dan's blog to others so he might eventually have a somewhat steady readership.

    Mesmerix, Alex, and Stephen McCarthy have already been regular visitors to Dan's blog and I appreciate all of you giving him a chance and lending your support with encouragement.

    StMc -- I think most of the blogger issues have been resolved for now. I don't know what was going on though.

    I hope all of you will visit Dan's blog every now and then and just leave him a note in the comments. I think it really helps to hear something from somebody outside of his world.

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  16. I just want to thank you all for taking a moment to look at my brother's blog. He really appreciates all of your comments and even though he is not able to respond to every one of them, be assured that he is reading them.

    Thank you Arlee for getting the word out there. I can't wait to write to Dan and show him how many more followers he has gotten.

    Thanks Again!
    http://thesagaoftheconcretejungle.blogspot.com/

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  17. It was really wonderful of you to post this. Thank you for the links. I will check out the blog.

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  18. Hi Lee,

    We all need feedback, the hope to feed our souls to continue! I visited Dan once before; I will again~ Your post is a heartfelt reminder of the appreciation we all need. A voice, a song of our soul, n' an artist needing to be heard~

    Thanks for the gentle reminder; we all need to be open and expand our awareness of art~

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  19. Lee--thank you for doing this. It seems to me you may have made a real and lasting contribution to somebody's life here. That's always a beautiful moment.

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  20. I know that I like for people to read what I've written and to have people let me know that they've read it. Tossing It Out is not my personal journal or my own private entertainment. If it were I would be better served in keeping a diary or just writing entries to store in my computer files. Someday I'd like wider recognition for my writing and as I see it this blog is a place where I can test the waters and just, well, toss some of my writing out there to see what kind of response I get.

    I think something of this nature also holds true for many of my readers, not to mention many of the other bloggers out there. This certainly holds true for Dan, who is at a bigger disadvantage than most of us. My sincere thanks to all who have responded today and especially to all who left comments on Dan's blog. It's a good thing to lift the spirits of another person.

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Lee