Flamed???

My last post was such an AweWakening for me. (For those of you who don't recognize that term, it's the title of our community's newsletter.) There I was, just writing one of my typical "what-a-dingbat-I-am" posts… and fell prey to my too occasional need to spout in four letter words my frustration/anger/surprise (you fill in any other blanks that come to mind). I used to swear a lot. I swear less these days. My best record is with driving… I always swore at stupid drivers. Now I say "hello!" every time some jerk cuts me off or doesn't use his blinkers.

But… I forget that people I don't know sometimes read my blog. Our technology has spawned this crossbreed between a private journal and a newspaper's headlines. Like video games, blogging can be seductive, sometimes addictive. Some bloggers set up elaborate counting methods to report how many hits they get every day. Even Blogger.com counts how many people read your profile. I noticed my numbers doubled when Mark Mossa featured me in his blog. (My toolbar doesn't have a link button… but his blog is You Duped Me Lord at markmossasj.blogspot.com) and the numbers increased again when I joined Sister-Bloggers, a blog ring. It's cool to know more people read what I have to say. Probably for me, not so cool. Too easy to get a swelled head… So, when I was taken to task for swearing in my blog, what happened?

Well of course there was my immediate righteous indignation. I'm old enough to be that child's grandmother, for heaven's sake. Who is she to tell me what I can and cannot do? That attitude shifted pretty quickly as I was reminded that "out of the mouths of babes" comes great wisdom, and I was shoved back into a more suitable place of humility. Look at it this way: this young woman wants to be a nun when she grows up. Her religion has given her specific parameters for how she should act in this capacity. Who am I to shatter her illusions? She will have plenty of time to discern in her own journey that nobody's perfect, especially not those in habits.

But wait, there's more. (Anyone besides me remember the gingko knife advertisements?) So I worked through my initial upset that I had been flamed on my own blog, but my loyal fans did not. Whoa Nellie! I don't remember having this many comments on many other posts. Maybe I should swear more often. Seriously, some of you I don't even know who you are, but you wrote such loving things about me. I'm awestruck. (That's similar to AweWakened.) And humbled even more. God uses everything. Amazing Grace.