Viral Beauty....

"The session transformed from panelists speaking to an audience to a circle of people engaged in conversation about how the blogosphere can be an opportunity to express, connect and organize to celebrate beauty, choice, and service to others. " - Staci at Practical Spirituality


I happened across this blog a few days ago and have had some interesting discussions with Staci since.

We discussed the panel at BlogHer called Beautiful Blogging and Positive Posting which, obviously, I did not attend but the idea captured my attention.

How we use blogs is important. The panel sounded inspirational and full of great ideas, women connecting with each other about how they can make the world a better place with their words.

I've tried to do that here - not always with rousing success because I'm human and sometimes I just need to complain - but there's something to be said for making an effort. :) This is not about trying to be perfect but instead about recognizing the beauty in imperfection. It's the Wabi Sabi element, the fact that we are all united impermanence and imperfection, if nothing else - Our lives are not perfect.

At first, I was reluctant to take on the 'positive' label because all too frequently, that really means "put the rug over the ugly stuff and pretend it's not there". As a dissident and a fairly aware human being, I can't and won't do that. In this case though, there is an open acknowledgment that suffering is real. It is our response to it that matters. It is our willingness to do whatever we can to alleviate suffering that matters.

One Plus Two Jen wrote this comment last night: and sometimes it's more dangerous, sitting by and watching others suffer and not doing anything, like we do every day by our actions in allowing others to suffer from poverty, homelessness, etc. what about that silence?

It's all about micro and macro. When the unacceptable is acceptable in the micro, it becomes acceptable in the macro. If we are ugly to each other, backbiting and nasty in small ways, it's easier to become callous to the larger issues. If we can be indifferent to each other as individuals, it's easier to become indifferent to groups and to the world at large. Stream to river to lake to ocean.

So here's an opportunity to use our words to heal rather than wound. We can choose to use our forums (blogs - whatever) to promote good ideas, things that inspire, things that make us want to be better people and we can change thinking. We can change the world by sharing ideas, making plans and acting cooperatively.

I'm in.

If this is something you would be interested in exploring further, please visit Staci's site and leave a comment for her.

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