Mommy Blogging Part 3: Jealousy and Glamour

Criticism of mommy blogging comes in many forms. The one I hear most often is, "Yeah, but doesn't it breed jealousy, covetousness, resentment, insecurity, bitterness and general discontent?"

Sure. If you're into that kind of thing. So does going to the mall or flipping through a magazine.

Ultimately, I think we largely choose to be jealous by dwelling on our lacks rather than our loves. (Like this: Gosh she is so cute. I wish I could be as cute as her. Oh wait, my legs look great in these shorts. And my hair hasn't felt this soft in years. . .) So while we can sigh and sob about how we're not as trendy or as put together, as organized or as much of a wizard in the kitchen, riding it off as discontent spurred by reading blogs is an easy scapegoat. I think we can spend just as much energy (if we choose to, that is) being happy for others, finding joy in peoples' cleverness, and experiencing genuine excitement over others' successes. Jealousy is the lazy-man's way of processing media. Take the time to get inspired!

This is what we can do when we engage in blogging as we would in a community. Because that's what this is, you know. Blogs have become a way for community to be freed from the limits of geography (although, I think we should pay more attention to geography and I think the general trend of loosing our sense of place is having detrimental effects on society. . . but that is another topic for another day. . .) We are able to connect with, share ideas with, and ultimately grow with other people who we wouldn't have the opportunity to share with otherwise. Isn't that cool?

Much of the annoyance over blogging stems from a feeling that what appears online is a sanitized, glamorized version of everyday life. Yes. This happens. But can you fault bloggers? Because while you see the occasional meltdown in the grocery store, mothers still dress up their kids and make them sit still and well-mannered for church. They themselves still put on make-up when they go out. They still dress up to meet up with old friends. It might be called dignity (or femininity). And honestly I think both of these things are largely lacking in today's world.

Yes, bloggers are the modern day autobiographers. And they might leave out a bad day or two (or two hundred). But I sort of like that. I like that I can get the hard stuff, the bad stuff, the depressing stuff, the reality stuff basically anywhere I want to look (open the newspaper; turn on the radio; sign on to Facebook; watch the news; read the weather report).

I like blogs because I like reading about women (and men) who relish in the good days and find beauty in the simple things. Because it makes me feel like I can too.


Read Part 1 HERE
Read Part 2 HERE