Spoiler Alert – Nostalgic Sentiments Will Be Expressed

As I approach the fourteenth Anniversary of Life, for instance, I will once again wax poetic about the heyday of the Blogosphere.

If I may borrow a quote Jason Journals, shared on his blog;

“In the beginning, there were blogs, and they were the original social web. We built community. We found our people. We wrote personally. We wrote frequently. We self-policed, and we linked to each other so that newbies could discover new and good blogs. I want to go back there.” — Monique Judge

Three thoughts in this quote caught my eye: “We built community.” (we did) “We found our people.” (we so did) and “I want to go back there.” (I do).

The Heyday of the Blogosphere

It was new and exciting to be a blogger then. I feel fortunate to have joined the writers who blogged about everything under the sun. On my blog, I sparked conversations about life itself. Livefyre had just been introduced, allowing us to see new comments without refreshing the page so in the comments section we had meaningful conversations. People didn’t just drop a comment and leave: we talked to each other and we heard one another. We built community there.

I remember springing from my bed on post mornings, so excited to greet the day! I knew I’d soon connect with my blogger friends on the LFI “porch” and on theirs. We spent far too many hours on our computers; communicating, and connecting. A phrase we bandied about a lot back then was “Back away from the computer!”  But we loved that environment. It was hard to step away.

It’s Not the Same Today

What happened? It was a gradual shift, so gradual that we didn’t even see what was happening until it was in the rear-view mirror. It seemed, one by one, bloggers simply went away.

I began to post less frequently myself because I had to focus on money-making pursuits. The blog would never be that for me. Besides, the attempt at making money through the blog was more of an excuse for blogging than a goal. Blogging connecting with people all over the world, was just so much fun! 

So Where Do We Go From Here?

I don’t want to merely publish a post once a year to wish myself a happy Blogaversary :o I also don’t want to write in an echo chamber. Remember the “crickets” of the early days; when we wondered if anybody but our friends and children read our words?

I don’t know where I’ll go from here. Or perhaps I do know and need to accept that it’s time to step away.

Meanwhile, two months before my 14th Blogaversary, I’ll catch you up on…

My Busy-ness

2017: I published Sounding the Drum: Community Building in the Digital Age

2019: I went back to university to get a Master of Organizational Management degree

2020: I incorporated Kalliergo Community Building, and moved to Ottawa to be closer to my daughter and her growing family

2024: I introduced a new Pilot Study to launch a community-building program to support First Responders

Yes, I’ve Been Busy

But I miss you.

With all the social media platforms available today, how did we lose the personal aspect of being “social”? It’s become so cold, so commercial. No matter what it is sometimes called, rarely is it true community building, not in the way it was back then. There are no stars in community building, there are only hosts who pour the coffee, fluff up the pillows, and make everyone comfortable.

Still; I’m glad I got to experience the heyday of the Blogosphere; a time when we were here just because it was just fun. And, for that precious moment in time, that was more than enough.

Are you a blogger? Were you here during the heyday?

Pull up a seat, make yourself comfortable, pour a hot cup of tea or coffee, and tell us your story.

Photo by Natalie Kinnear on Unsplash