Rachel Kiser
Blogger | Mom of Two

“There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope. We give them a turn and they make new and curious combinations… but they are the same old pieces of colored glass that have been in use through all the ages.” Mark Twain

Why am I writing right now?

Better yet, why are you reading?

Is it because I’m preparing to say something groundbreaking, or impart some new, life-changing wisdom on you that may just be the solution to all of your problems?

Chances are, you’ll be disappointed, then. But please read on.

Follow me for a second…

The medium through which information and ideas are shared has evolved rapidly in the past decade. The availability of online news sources and personal blogs coupled with our increasingly mobile culture has spurred on a quick shift from newspapers, television, and magazines to rapidly refreshing and updated websites and publications.

Half of my social media feed is full of news articles and blog posts passed on by friends who were moved by something that was communicated. Whether it’s posted because the sharer agrees or disagrees, interacting with ideas this way has become an important part of our culture. We value the thoughts and opinions of others, and we also want open space to speak our own.

As someone who writes on matters of parenting on a consistent basis, I often feel the tension between verbalizing the things I process and realizing that I, in all honesty, have very little to bring to the table as far as actual new ideas or thoughts.

After a while you realize that almost every blog post you read or write is just another hashed out version of a topic that’s already been covered. In the parenting world, it’s things like the struggles of being a work-outside-of-the-home or stay-at-home parent. Sleep training and nap schedules. Body changes post-baby. The decision to grow (or not grow) your family. The list goes on and on.

While considering how pervasive this material is, I realized something. There is a very real explanation for why the internet is flooded with parenting blogs: so many of us are asking for and seeking the exact same things. A creative and personal reimagining of the same old wisdom, experiences, and ideas that many of us are facing in a particular season of life. We desire validation that we’re making the right choices. We want to feel assured that we’re doing the best we can. And, most of all, probably, we need to know we’re not the only ones. 

Think about it. There are parenting websites and blogs that have hundreds of thousands, even millions, of followers. I venture to say that the majority of their readers aren’t looking for trailblazing news and information. If they are anything like me, they are looking for encouragement. They are looking for something, or someone, they connect with. Someone to put them at ease at a time in their lives where things seem ever-changing.

When I consider what articles and blog posts have personally affected me most, they are the ones that candidly put into words things that I, myself, have felt. Sure, they weren’t the first posts ever written on the topic of having your second child or mourning a miscarriage; but for me, they were timely. Reading personal, public memoirs are a simple but profound way to feel like someone has come alongside you to say, “Me, too.”

When a culture that is increasingly hands-off meets a stage of life that can feel isolating, you find yourself with a need. And, often, that need can be mitigated by words shared openly on a screen.

Poet Audre Lorde said, “There are no new ideas. There are only new ways of making them felt.” Because of this, I will continue to write. I’ll write in the hopes of my words connecting with even just one person. I’ll write because there is intrinsic value in a community of people who mutually share meaningful parts of their lives. And I’ll continue to read, because I need that, too. I have seen, in my own world, the life-giving power of vulnerable words shared by others I may never come face-to-face with.

So thank you for reading, I’m sorry there was nothing revolutionary found within this post; but maybe, like me, that’s not what you’re looking for, either.

About Rachel Kiser

Rachel is a wife and mother living in Raleigh, North Carolina. She’s a fan of good coffee, wearer of gray t-shirts, and is constantly starting books she will never finish. Her family is her joy, and she loves to engage with other moms and dads on matters of parenting. Her blog posts have also been featured on the Today Show Parenting Blog and Scary Mommy.

View all posts by Rachel Kiser here.

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