Rowing North Together
“The circles of women around us weave invisible nets of love that carry us when we’re weak, and sing with us when we are strong.”
I feel like I need to start this blog post with a disclaimer – this post is about YOU! I have shared in past posts that I am primarily writing this blog for me. But it’s also about you. I’m not hung up on how many of you subscribe to my blog, but I admit that every now and then I check to see how many subscribers and social media followers I have! For most of my life I have felt alone - note, that does not mean lonely. I’ve never felt much of an affinity with the many women I have met along this life journey. So to know that there are several hundred of you who are rowing north with me absolutely astounds me! I feel such a sense of belonging, knowing that many of you feel much like I do.
Now, I’m a bit of a data junkie, and I love crunching numbers and analyzing data, so I thought I would poke around my website, social media, and tech tools that I use to find out a bit more about you. And here’s the disclaimer part, it may alarm some of you that I know things about you, but please be assured that I only know the basics. The scary part is that ‘out there’ the big players, with access to data analysis software, know far too much about all of us. I am always very careful not to share any personal information online – other than baring my heart in my blog posts - and I never complete the polls that pop up on my social feeds. But I swear that somewhere on my computer, someone is eavesdropping on my conversations. I can remark to my daughter that I need to go shopping for a new bra and suddenly bra advertisements will show up on my Facebook feed. How creepy is that!
So here’s a little bit of what I know about you.
Ageless Possibilities subscribers span a lifetime! Some of the younger women in the 25 - 34 year age range are my daughters’ friends, many of whom I have known since kindergarten! I have so enjoyed watching them grow into women I admire and so appreciate their support. One out of every five subscribers is 65+. I do wish all women 65+ weren’t lumped together! A bit of ageism, I suppose. I guess too many people still believe that once we hit 65 we all fit the same mold! But there is a world of difference between Sharon, my 77 year old friend and my 86 year old mother!
We are an international community, with concentrations of women in English speaking countries (really, no one from New Zealand?) and with 5% of you scattered across exotic places around the globe. Just think about our different life experiences and what we can learn from each other!
And, we are all WOMEN rowing north together! Now that said, it is far too easy to hide behind a Facebook or Instagram profile, and I suppose a couple of you could be men. But I regularly weed out the men - those men who are lonely and think I may be the answer to their dreams, and some of your husbands - okay, this has only happened a couple of times. I’m not quite sure why a spouse would want to know what you are reading on a woman’s blog! I mean my blog is public, so really anyone can read it, but take a hint from my respectful husband – he never reads anything I post unless I invite him to, or I ask him to review a post because I have mentioned him.
AGELESS POSSIBILITIES
The other information I have access to is when you visit my website, what you like to read, and how much time you spend on the various pages.
I send my weekly blog out to subscribers every Sunday morning and it warms my heart to see that 70% of those of you click on the weekly blog post within the first 24 hours. A number of you have shared that you have made it a Sunday morning ritual to read my blog while enjoying your morning coffee. That evokes such a lovely image for me of women around the globe reading my blog at the same time - snuggled in bed, curled up by the fire, or sitting in the garden. Where do you sit when you read Ageless Possibilities?
As subscribers, you also seem to enjoy the additional resources, websites, and information that I include in my weekly e-newsletter. Over half of you click on the links. Last week, most of you checked out at least one of the homes-away-from-home I mentioned, the cottage on Saturna Island was the most popular! Can I let you in on a little secret? If you want to see orcas, head to Saturna! We have seen them from the cliffs at East Point every time we have vacationed there.
Most read blog post since I started blogging? Five Lessons From A Quilt
Least read blog post this year? Present in the Moment
What I find most fascinating about popular/unpopular blogs is that sometimes I write a blog post that I personally love – and I cannot wait to share it with you! But I can never predict your reaction because some of my favourites, are your least favourites!
WRITING OUR LIFE STORIES
This is one area of my website that I would love to explore a bit further with you one day as, statistically, it seems many of you who subscribe to my blog are not interested in the life story workshops that I facilitate. This makes me wonder, should I set up a separate website for Women Rowing North: Writing Our Life Stories? I am concerned that you may feel like I am pushing you to register for these workshops when that is not my intention at all! I will have to give this a bit more thought.
CREATING A COMMUNITY WHERE WE CAN SUPPORT EACH OTHER AS WE JOURNEY NORTH
This is another area where I am wondering whether I should be doing things differently, or offering something else. One of my goals is to facilitate connections between women, building a community of mutual support and encouragement. This certainly happens through the life story workshops I have offered, participants have connected and started their own writing and discussion groups. I am thinking though that there must be another way to connect. But maybe you aren’t looking for connections? Maybe you are content just reading my blog and reaching out with a personal message, like many of you do, when something resonates with you.
As I wrap this up I realize I have given myself a few items to reflect on as I begin to plan for the fall, which always feels like the start of a new year for me! If you have any thoughts or suggestions please feel free to drop me a line – I always love hearing from you.