Thursday, October 18, 2007

Messy...

I'm reading this great book. I'm on page 43, but I already know I'll be buying a copy. (Mine is from the Scott Library.) It's called Messy Spirituality. And it is full of grace. And full of words like the ones I have in my profile. This book, like the Ragamuffin Gospel, which I first encountered my senior year of college, is the kind of book that talks about the life I lead. Messy. So I thought I'd give you a tour through the wording of my profile:

I'm a work in progress librarian. (I'm not Nancy Pearl, nor probably ever will be. I have two bosses, and the one that understands I'm a mess but great at helping patrons is the one I love more. I often feel like I'm a day late and a dollar short. I hate paperwork, and I dislike sitting at desks for long periods of time. I am forever looking for someone to interrupt me with a question like "Can you recommend a good book?" Or "Who wrote Goodnight Moon?" Or "I'm looking for German music."
I love books, Jesus, and apple strudel. (It's true. If you visited me anywhere, in my car, in my house, in my workplace, I have piles of library books, books bought from the library store, books, books, books. I also love Jesus. This is probably less apparent in my life. You would probably only know that I love apple strudel if you asked me or I told you--and now I have.)
I've traveled the world only to discover that I adore Pittsburgh, PA. (This town, of retired steel workers and crumbling buildings, this place where you can get lost even if you know how to get there, this place where the natives have their own foods, language, and allegiances.)
I attempt most days to work out my life with fear and trembling. (Oh, yes.)
I write about books, shoes, Carrie Bradshaw, and an occasional post about the Psalms. (I used to think, how could Imelda Marcos have so many shoes? Then I became one of those women too. I have learned more about healthy relationships from Sex and the City than I have from all the "relationship" books I've read. The Psalms are the most openly honest book of the Bible--and I am grateful to belong to a clan in which the most revered poetry includes "My God, why hast thou forsaken me?")
I also have a dark side, so watch out! ('Nuff said.)
Sarah Louise is a pseudonym, so the names may have been changed to protect the innocent... (My name is NOT Sarah Louise. Neither is my boyfriend's name Max. I don't know anyone named Sally. The only people whose real names are used are those who use those names on the blogosphere. I could be here all night explaining that one, but for simplicity: I am protecting my privacy and the privacy of my friends.)

And I have loved not writing a post every morning this week. I have not quit the blogosphere, as those of you who have seen my comments hither and yon may have seen. I will probably never be a top blogger. I never intended to be one. (Well, I do have my megalomaniac days...) I will probably never have 17 comments on one post. I will probably never win any prizes for all the books I've finished. But I have my little community--you, dear readers, and while I say to those that scoff blogs, "I blog so that I keep my writing muscles sharp," that is not true. I blog because I have something to say and I want someone to hear, someone to read, someone to say, "me too."

8 comments:

Erin said...

Me too ;)

Mig said...

ME TOO :-)

KitchenKiki said...

17 comments? I am doing well to have more than one that isn't from you...

And, I'll confess, I have never made apple strudel. Life demands that I make dinner. So I usually try to make it tasty, but rarely does life demand I make dessert.
discuss among yourselves

KitchenKiki said...

ps the chickens made me giggle today. I think that way about my spices...

Lauren said...

I loved this post, it was beautiful, and I feel the same way about being a work in progress in so many ways. Life is cyclical in that sense...

Sarah Louise said...

Kiki--I have blogfriends who get 17 on occasion...I think the highest I ever got was 24 and it was because I begged.

Sarah Louise said...

L--thanks! Hey, I should add this book to my "shelf."

Badger said...

I have nothing intelligent to say on this sleep-deprived morning; I'm just trying to boost your comment count. :)