A splash of color!

I’ve been guilty of overthinking blog posts.  I often get into the scenario thinking I need to write a ton, have a bunch of pictures, and create this perfect article.  There are times all of that happens.  My article, “Confessions of a newly converted marsh kid” was one of those articles. “One V-Strom: 100,000 Miles” was another one of those articles.  The high touch, high investment article does have its purpose.  The challenge though is not every article needs to be so high touch.

Likewise, I’ve largely been critical of microblogging services like Instagram and Tumblr because the bar for creating content is almost too low.  I don’t want to create crap.  Facebook for me has been a happy medium as the exposure keeps the content bar high.  I really don’t “own” my content.  Owning my content is the key reason I stay with WordPress.  I can point to my blog and say: “That’s me.  That’s 10 years of me.”  I can press an export button and have all of my content the way I uploaded it on my hard drive.

In some ways I wonder if the bar for creating content on my blog is too high.  I ask myself if I’m denying my readers the joy of small moments by keeping the content bar high. There is a Japanese Maple tree in my yard that I’ve recently begun to really fall in love with.  The colors on that particular tree are truly outstanding in the fall.  Today it was shedding leaves as it’s just past its peak and the day’s rain accelerated each leaf’s separation from the tree.

I’ve never really given a lot of credence to rain until this year.  In Georgia it was the irritating event that made planning outdoor events more complicated.  I couldn’t grasp the concept when I moved to California that it wouldn’t rain from May to November.  These past few years have been an extreme lack of rain here in California.  We’re suffering a major drought.  This year we celebrate that event were water falls from the sky.  I like to look at the forecast and see when rain is coming.  I get excited to see the rain!  I really get now that rain replenishes the earth.  It’s one of the key vehicles that we need to sustain life.  With each passing shower, it becomes clear the earth is restoring herself.

Seeing the yellow, orange, and red Japanese Maple leaf stuck on my truck in the middle of a rain shower just brought a smile to my face seeing the tree letting go of its beauty with a bright splash of color, the earth restoring herself with a shower, and a moment for me enjoying the drive on the way to work in the rain.

Was this some grand event worthy of a blog?  Maybe, maybe not.  I’ll leave it to you – my dear reader to decide.