I have a little system I try to follow when I write my blog posts. Nothing ground breaking. I make an effort to post in my different categories so that the posts rotate and one category does not get more posts than another. Some of you may not even know that I have categories, but I do and today the schedule asks for a post in Nine Months More.
Nine Months More is my ‘motherhood’ category. If you can detangle motherhood from any other aspect of life, this is where those stories fall. Till now I have had no trouble choosing and segregating posts so the ones about motherhood fell neatly in line. On one hand today is no different, I have many stories and ideas that I want to share about motherhood. Yet here is the thing, I am starting to wonder what the real purpose of these stories are.
I worship at the altar that these stories are important to share, to unite women, to break down silent walls and to make everyone feel like motherhood is always a journey shared. Many a time I have come crawling through the internet to find an anecdote or advice on how to handle something I might be going through with my boys.
But the more I do, or perhaps I don’t, I am starting to wonder a few things. I grapple with the idea that it is motherhood at all. It is, it will always be. But somehow the stories are incomplete, surely they are stories of parenthood, Dad, grandparents, our partners have a voice too? Then I grapple with the idea of the family stereotype. The stereotype is not true for everyone and here I am rattling on about my stories, perhaps excluding others at the same time?
I grapple with the idea of validity of stories and how true they are in terms of time. One of the ideas I have for a post is Ditching Date Night and how hubby and I gave up on date night and have opted for doing something together each night, at home instead. But how long will that be true for us? Does it even matter? Is the story important regardless?
I want to write on the Unwritten Chapters of Parenting, the idea of Making Memories and how that influences our children and their view of the world, and yet I hesitate. I want to tell the stories of other mothers in my life. Those who juggle study and children at the same time. But are these stories that define life and not motherhood?
Recently I read an article advocating that the ‘mummy blog’ is dead. Now I certainly do not want to get that debate started. For one thing, I’m not even sure you can call this space a mummy blog. Sure I am a mum who writes on the internet. I am also a scientist who writes on the internet. I am also a migrant who writes on the internet. I am a person who writes on the internet. All are equally true.
Perhaps for me, the scope of this little part of my blog needs to change. Widen in its perspective and shift the focus a little before I continue to tell my stories of motherhood. Hubby has always told me that this part of my blog was for our boys, so that they could come back one day and read their mother’s words, see their past through her eyes. That will always be true.
But there is so much noise online. Noise, noise and more noise. The noise makes so much of the content feel irrelevant. Do I want to add to the noise? Is that all we can do? Or is there something more?
Perhaps the purpose of my stories is to accept that I can only control why I write them. And not why others read them. Perhaps there is a great lesson in that. Or perhaps this is simply more noise?
Conversations over Coffee will be returning. The last Tuesday of each month. Everyone is always welcome.
The first topic is Conversations with the Little Things. Need a quick reminder what #convocoffee is all about? Check it out here: #convocoffee
Linking up with #IBOT
Catch up on my last blog post In Our DNA
