First installment of YOU-YOU's

(I have to do the "you-you's" in several separate posts because they are so long) -check back tomorrow for more you-you's

I have been blogging about a year now. These are some of the blogs that I read all the time. The following is the impression that I get from you, as you are represented on your blog. Please don’t take offense at anything in this narrative that is not completely correct. This is just a “you-you”, as observed by me, for your entertainment only.

Motherkitty was one of the first blogs that I read when I started blogging. I quickly discovered that MK is related to several other bloggers on her list, and it is a good way for her family to keep in touch. (I wish my family was this computer literate.) Recently, MK went though a serious surgery, and I could tell by the tone of her blog that she was in a lot of pain, and not really in a good mood. It seemed that she was taking a lot longer to go through this than she had expected. Lately MK seems to be feeling better, I can tell by her recent posts. Her quick wit and funny stories have returned after a much missed absence.

Texas to Tennessee is one of those people who have done what some of us only dream of doing. She moved, several hundred miles away from her home, with very few possessions. She took her best dog friend, Mocha, with her. She just picked up and moved out of her comfort zone and away from all of her friends. The move seems to have been an effort to discover herself, and try to be all that she can be. T2T seemed apprehensive at first, but now she has settled in to her new home and is finding a place to reflect on life, write about it, take photographs, exercise, and help others at her retreat. She is now on staff at the retreat. (See, she went from visiting to running the place!) Once, several months ago, I almost visited T2T. I had a friend flying to Nashville on business and I was invited along. I even plotted out the route on mapquest from Nashville to Penuel Ridge. It turned out that I didn’t travel to Nashville, but someday I probably will.

Matthew’s Blog is a blog about a very sick baby, as documented by his father in photographs. The blog is to keep the family informed on Matthews’s progress, but also a journal of his life. Matthew has a serious heart condition, that just ten years ago would have been fatal. With the miracle of modern micro-surgery, and talented physicians, Matthew will now survive to be a healthy boy. It has been touch and go through a lot of his procedures. It is great to see how Matthew’s parents rally around him, even when they are so weary. They never lose their hope and strong faith, even though I know that they are constantly on “the edge of their seats” with worry. Whenever I am feeling low, I check Matthew’s Blog. It gives me hope, and a lot to be thankful for.

Chocolatebox Diary is also one of the first blogs I discovered. Hiromi is a woman in Japan who is eagerly leaning English. She has three beautiful daughters. All of them are busy and involved in school and sports. Hiromi’s blog shows us the wonderful meals that she cooks for her family and all of the activities that she attends with her daughters. She has taken a job recently, and does not have much time to blog. Sometimes she is so involved with her family, that she doesn’t take time for herself. This makes her sad. I remind her to smile. She is as interested in my culture as I am in hers. We have become good friends. We e-mail each other and someday we will meet in person.