Thursday, August 7, 2014

Julie & Julia: Narcissism With a Slice of Humble Pie

Image from: http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/juliejulia/


The movie Julie & Julia is one of the reasons I started blogging. I watched it for the first time the summer before I began writing my blog and it resonated with me in a big way. I watch it over every now and again because I love the way it makes me feel and also to refresh my memory on why I began this writing journey in the first place. If you have been here with me from the beginning, you may remember that writing was one of my Tangerine Dreams. One of the things I loved to do but never carved the time out for myself to really do it or have the confidence that my words would not be complete rubbish. Life gets hairy every once in a while and I unwillingly step away from the blog for a bit and when I do I miss it terribly. I do understand this is just how life works sometimes, though. It seems that life is beginning to cooperate more nowadays and I am excited for the possibilities. If you are a new reader, I want to give you a heart felt welcome and also say that I hope what you read here makes you want to stick with me and keep coming back for more.


Image from: http://adribarrcrocetti.com/main/2011/10/26/mastering-the-art-of-french-cooking-the-revolution-was-televised/


For Julie, in the movie, she takes on a specific project with her blog, deciding to cook every single recipe from Julia Child's cook book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, in one years time. The movie tells parallel stories, bouncing back and forth between Julie and Julia's lives lived many years apart. This is all based on Julie's real life journey and I absolutley loved the whole concept very much. She goes though her ups and downs, her trials and tribulations. Finding out about herself and her relationships all along the way while finally feeling proud of something she had done and actually saw through until the end. It was beautiful and inspiring. This story will stick with me forever.

When I wrote my first couple of posts years ago I did not really think anyone would read them. You know, besides my Mom or my besties and so on. I was doing it for me and that felt really  good. I rarely did things for myself. I mean, come on, I'm a mom. If you are a parent you can relate wholeheartedly, I am sure. Everything I did was for them. This is not always a bad thing but if you let it go on for too long, like me, you might start to feel pieces of yourself slipping away. This blog was exactly what I needed to start bringing the real Ginny back to life. Now here we are.

Blogging does seem to embrace a level of narcissism. Putting yourself out into the world, sharing the nitty gritty details at times. I am not always sure how I feel about this. I do my best to not come across as shallow or feel like I am bragging, ever. I try to keep my writing as close and as true to real life as I possibly can. I do my best to incorporate the goods and the bads. I have always been a caretaker by nature and I feel that my blog helps me express this to anyone who decides to drop by, even if only for a while. I guess only you can be the judge on whether I am getting it right, in that respect. When I write, I think a long time about my words. I make sure that I say what I mean and that I mean what I say. I don't want to misrepresent myself in any way.

When I share something with you on my blog it will only be for a handful of reasons. Writing out my thoughts allows me to work through some things in my life. Sometimes it allows me to put certain things into perspective or helps me to cope with something difficult or trying. Other times I write because I know that I am not alone. There are millions of people in the world just like me and maybe by sharing something here I can help them in some minuscule way. Just maybe. Lastly, sometimes I write about doing things that I really just love to do. I enjoy being a mother with my entire being. I cook and bake. I sing and play a little guitar. I dabble in the arts, making and creating different kinds of things. And, I love planning and hosting events for my five children and extremely extended family. These things are my happy place and this blog was all about helping me find the happy places that were pushed under the rug in my measly attempts to be a Super Mom. What I have discovered so far is that you can't be a Super Mom if you are not completely happy and true to yourself. For me this is a constant work in progress but I am getting there.

So, to all of you new readers, that is what I am about. This is why I started and how I got here, so far. I hope you enjoy your time with me and I look forward to the journey ahead. Thanks for stopping by and please come again.



** Here are some other posts you might enjoy...

Most popular: http://ginnylouden.blogspot.com/2013/04/desperations-of-wounded-mother.html

Most controversial: http://ginnylouden.blogspot.com/2013/05/whos-parent.html

First post ever: http://ginnylouden.blogspot.com/2011/12/i-am-no-writer.html

One of my favorites: http://ginnylouden.blogspot.com/2012/02/little-lies-and-butterflies.html

My attempt at humor: http://ginnylouden.blogspot.com/2014/06/how-to-feel-like-kid-again-letter-from.html





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