Raising the Bar: Part II

The point is brought home immediately. Within hours I notice a new incoming link, and trace it to the Mouse's brand new blog. The link reads "The Gypsinator's Blog--She's my Hero."

Wham.

I get that from my students, but Mouse is not a student. It maybe wouldn't surprise me coming from someone I've known awhile, who I have been able to serve or help in some way, but I haven't known her long.

That link instantly raises the bar. It reminds me that regardless of how we choose to see things, we are not living for ourselves. Every single one of us is a walking example for the world, for better or worse, whether we agree to be or not.

When I'm around Mouse, "being a hero" is furthest from my mind, choked out by laughter and how can we shatter the fun-barrier and what flavor Blizzard is best for breakfast? Makes no difference that I never interviewed for the position--frankly, the responsibility is frightening.

This is where we all stand. Accidental warriors in an army of unlikely heroes unknowingly fighting for the heart of the world. Every action, every word spoken or written becomes ammunition, regardless of intention... or even awareness.

Let that sink in.

And sink in some more.

Thank you, Mouse, for that reminder. And come home soon so we can whack at each other with escrima sticks!

Raising the Bar: Part I

Over the course of a day or two, I have the same conversation several times over with unrelated people about blog content, for no reason other than happenstance. Where do you draw the line around what is appropriate?

In a content-focused blog it's pretty darn clear. You can be sure, for example, posts by billydaking or Film Geek will have something to do with cinema, however far the connection may be stretched.

In a journal-y blog, though, anything goes and its up to the writer to draw the line in the sand. My own standard had been anything I wouldn't mind my youngest student reading and showing the parents. Of course, it could be argued that almost anything I don't want her or him to read I probably shouldn't be doing/thinking/writing about anyway, but that's a whole nother conversation.

The reasoning is less about the impact controversial posts would have on my or my subjects personal and professional lives (not that I live some racy, underground double life), but about the world immediately around me. It's a law of the universe: we get what we focus on. What do I want to create? What do I want to magnify and multiply? What seeds to I want to sow in others' minds, bearing in mind the eventual harvest will inevitably touch me too?