Why I Continue to Blog
First of all, Dustin, Rosie, and I are all safe and dry. If you haven’t heard about what’s going on in LA, here’s the short version of it: Over the weekend, Louisiana got hit with 6.9 trillion gallons of rain, causing over 40,000 homes to be damaged, 20,000 people to be displaced and 13 deaths. The locals here are saying that this flooding is worse than Katrina. You can read about the flooding here.
Thank you to everyone who reached out over the last couple of days to check in on us; your texts, facebook messages, and phone calls have meant the world to us. We live on the third floor of our apartment building, and while we did have a bit of a scare with the water flooding into our cars, we were able to move them in the nick of time to some higher ground. We spent much of the weekend hunkered down with our ADT family and the Olympics and just waited out the storm. We are very, very lucky.
But we are surrounded by many, many people who were not. The devastation from the flooding in Louisiana is unbelievable and utterly heartbreaking. The ADT family went out yesterday morning to help some members of our church whose homes needed to be gutted from all the water damage. It literally took the words out of my mouth and the breath our of my chest to drive down the road and see piles of people’s lives at the edge of the road, waiting to be picked up by the trash.
It’s been a hard summer for Louisiana. Having never lived here before and having no desire to live here permanently, I didn’t realize I would be so affected by the things that have happened in the state. Being so close to the Baton Rouge shootings and then watching the waters creep up around our apartment here has shaken my core. The people here are good. Their way of life is different, yes, but the people are good and kind. And as much as I don’t want to admit it, Louisiana has a little piece of my heart and I have been hurting for them this summer.
It’s been hard, to be surrounded by so much tragedy, to find the motivation to write for my blog. I’ve been asking myself what is the point of sharing my favorite beauty products or what cute dress I wore last week when there are bigger problems in the world right now? Every time I have sat down to write, I have felt frivolous and shallow. So many people in my community have literally lost everything and I’m writing about lipstick?
So as I sat down today, I asked myself why do I continue to blog?
Because there’s so much sadness and devastation surrounding us in this world and sometimes, reading about lipstick is a much-needed escape. Because sometimes looking at pretty pictures helps you take a break from the sorrow around you. Because sometimes you need a little bit of hope that life can get back to simple worries of “what shoes should I wear tomorrow” instead of “do I even have shoes to wear?”
Because I know how hard it is to move forward from something wipes your future out in midflight. I know how terrifying it is to move forward with the fear of something tragic happening again. And I know that it is possible to pick up the pieces from a devastating event and to rebuild it into a vibrant life.
My blog isn’t going to cure the world of all the problems, and it certainly isn’t going to help much with the flooding down here in the Deep South. But I hope that by continuing to blog, I can help spread the hope and courage of so many people that I am surrounded by here. I hope I can remind you all in the humblest of ways to enjoy you dry homes today and to take an extra second to appreciate the shoes you have in your closet and the car you have in your driveway. And I hope you know, that no matter what storm in life you are facing, it’s okay to grieve. And it’s also possible to rebuild. And that I’m here for you, cheering you on and sharing my favorite lipsticks just to give you an escape if you need one.
If you are able to, please consider donating to the flood relief efforts here in Louisiana (you can specifically select the flood relief efforts in the drop down menu.)
