Speak Up, Speak Out, and Speak From the Heart

Today is a dark day. The religious right (not conservative) stacked court has overturned Roe v Wade and many are convinced that overturning Obergefell (gay marriage) is next. It would seem so since Justice Thomas, in his response, sent out a clear clarion call to the far right to challenge same-sex marriage and the right to have contraception access.

The culture vulture groups like the ADF (Alliance Defending Freedom) and Liberty Counsel will be sure to answer that call if they haven’t already started. But, who am I kidding? They began when it became legal; they have just been waiting for the green light.

Well, there it is.

To be clear, I hate abortion. That said, what I hate even more is the idea that the state can strip that choice from a woman, criminalize her, and criminalize those who may help her for having an abortion. What she does with her body is not the state’s domain. That’s between her and whatever factors she believes are essential in her life.

Also, to be clear, I love my husband and will fight any way I can to not allow the religious right to nullify our marriage in the eyes of the state. Stay tuned.

Now to the point of this post. I recently contacted about eight bloggers who used to blog daily and do not any longer. I was looking for some background context for a few things I am writing about in my memoir. I did ask them all about why they stopped blogging. Most said they felt the need to move on with other projects or that social media became the primary focus of their efforts.

But two different bloggers said something that made my heart hurt. They essentially said they stopped because no one was interested in truth or facts anymore. One said their very hard work was like spitting in the wind, so they gave up. They didn’t like that the only comments they got were from trolls or people with nothing but criticisms.

I get it. Trolls and attention-seeking contrarians are energy drains.

But since the release of Pray Away and my memoir coming out next year, I have been reminded that I don’t need to be motivated by how others may or may not receive what I have to say. I write/blog with the intent of trying to empower, encourage, equip, or at the very least inspire or entertain. I am motivated by what I believe is right and proper. If it is one person or 1 million people, or hearing the echo of my voice (lol), it doesn’t matter. I hope to impact whoever stumbles across what I write positively.

Trolls are trolls. Contrarians will always be Debbie Downers. But, don’t write to them. Instead, write for those looking for truth but may not ever chime in while agreeing with you. Next, write for those that get pi**ed off at what you write, but it sticks with them and, over time, will change their heart and mind. Finally, write for those who agree with you but are silent because of shame or fear.

Most importantly, write for your own catharsis; get what’s in your heart into the world. Some of us are not entirely ourselves if we don’t sing our songs, write out our thoughts, advocate with passion, or create beauty from the heart.

I hope to see a few bloggers I talked with getting back in the saddle. We will need their voices to join the chorus for the greater good. So what are you waiting for?