So, today’s post is just a little bit of housekeeping.
First of all, I wanted to say hello to all my new readers and commenters! I’ve been linked in a bunch of places in the past few weeks (which is terribly exciting), and that means some new faces. So, hello! This blog wouldn’t be anything without all of you, and I love that you’re here.
But, that leads me to this: I’ve never felt the need to have a comment policy before– I just moderated comments on a case-by-case basis, although it’s been extraordinarily rare when I’ve decided not to approve a comment. I basically have one, Supreme Cardinal Rule: no ad hominem. And… yep, that’s pretty much it. Keeping things PG-13, as well, but, I’ve never had a problem with that yet. I talk about some pretty intense things here, which means I get the same kind of content in my comments, and I appreciate that. Sharing our stories, speaking the truth of our lives– that’s what this blog is here for.
So, pretty much anything goes– except attacking each other. Intense, passionate, disagreement is fine, and I do my best to be flexible in this. Most of the time, I just step in briefly to remind you guys to play nice, but that hasn’t happened more than half a dozen times so far. I try to keep out of it unless it’s clearly getting out of hand, and that can be a tough balance to strike.
Which means that, if you are feeling attacked, pressured, etc, by someone in the comments, feel free to say so– in the comment section, or you can e-mail me (contact info at the top). I want my comment section to be a safe place where everyone can talk, argue, and yes, even fight occasionally.
However, this comes with a caveat: just like any other moderated space on the internet, I don’t take kindly to trolls. If you send me an e-mail or try to contact me, and you threaten me in any way, I will instantly block you and ban you from my blog. And I am the only person who gets to decide when I feel threatened. I will take any necessary steps to make sure that myself and my readers are protected.
Ahem. Anyhoo.
I am so lucky because my readers are an amazingly diverse group– there are people here from pretty much every religious tradition– Christians of all stripes, Judaism, Messianic… and there’s also agnostics, theistic agnostics, atheists . . . straight, bi, gay, lesbian, trans* . . . and I love that you’re here. I have learned so much from all of you, and that makes me happy. But, that also means that we’re all coming from intensely different backgrounds, and keeping that in mind could make sure that feathers don’t get ruffled too much.
All of this will go into a “comment policy” page at the top. Nothing much will change around here, really, but I just wanted to get this out there.
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I’m going to be taking a break next week. My in laws are going to be in town, and we’re doing all the touristy sight-seeing things. Ordinarily, I’d have a good-sized backlog of posts ready to go up while I was away, but I haven’t had the time or the energy to do that. It’s been… an exhausting week, for a variety of reasons.
That being said, I’m currently open to two types of guest posts: my “learning the words” series, and you can find all of the posts here.
I’m also looking to start another guest post series. One of my readers sent me a request, and I think it is a good, good idea. Many of you come from intensely fundamentalist, Quiverful, homeschooling, patriarchal, or conservative religious homes. I think it would be helpful to have a series where those of you who have managed to get away from that environment tell your stories. I’m specifically looking for stories on how you moved out of your parents’ home while still single and what that was like– the steps you had to take, being concerned about younger siblings, were you able to move out with your stuff, did your parents try to keep you at home through withholding identification, all of that.
Anyway, I’m so glad you’re here, and I hope you’ll join with me in making this a safe community where we learn from each other. So, come in, sit down, grab a cup of coffee (or tea!), a fuzzy blanket, and let’s settle in for a good, long talk.
