All They Need Is For You To Find Them...

A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte
Georges-Pierre Seurat
1884

When I first saw this painting by Seurat, I thought it was rather strange-looking -- wooden, in fact. It seemed so very simple, I wondered why it would have taken him two years to paint it. But the more I look at it, the more I am drawn to its sense of movement. Even though the figures appear still, there is a hum of energy to the painting. The people in the park are there in small groups of two and three, and although they appear not to be interacting with each other, they are all connected by the same idea. They have gone to the island in the middle of the River Seine in order to enjoy the park on a Sunday afternoon, and in that they have something in common.

Blogging reminds me a bit of that painting -- we're all blogging basically for the same reason. I have been blogging for almost four years now, and I have seen blogs come and go. Some of the most interesting, well-written blogs on Blogger have more or less died on the vine, while others have gained momentum and thrived. There is no rhyme nor reason to it. I think it may be partly due to timing and luck, it may partly depend on how much time the blogger has to visit other blogs, or it may depend on the particular theme of any one blog. In my travels, I have discovered some extremely well-written, well thought out, fun, informative and entertaining blogs that have almost no commenters or followers at all. Some wonderful little gems get overlooked, and yet those particular blogs may be amongst the best I have ever read. And yes, you know who you are. I'm talking about you -- all of you...

Vase of Flowers
Georges-Pierre Seurat

One of our blogging friends said in an e-mail to me yesterday, "I would love to read and promote new blogs. Let's do something together. Any ideas?" I agree with her, and I have an idea -- a suggestion -- that I think might work. I thought, perhaps, rather than directing people to blogs we like, which can at times feel sort of exclusive and someone may be left out, why don't we do something inclusive and exchange blogrolls. That is to say, one day a week, instead of going to our regular blogs that we visit, why don't we click on someone else's blogroll instead. I have 155 blogs on my blog roll, they are all well worth a visit, and I invite you to visit them. Some of them truly are undiscovered gems. Some of them are astonishing in their honesty and candour. Others will amaze you with their beautiful writing, painting and photography, and some are just plain fun. All they need is for you to find them.