Don't Lose Your Passion.

I'm looking at my blog posts, and I realize the dark truth. I have become one of THOSE people. People who enthusiastically start a blog, but after a short while, they lose interest and desert their blog like an empty water bottle after a concert. In my defense, however, I will say that this blog isn't my only writing project. I do have another blog that I update semi-regularly and other writing projects. What makes this particular neglecting so significant though is that the blog is called, "Keep Writing With Passion." Obviously, I haven't. What keeps us from doing the things we love? I will attempt to offer a few reasons why we stop pursuing our passion...whatever it is.

1. Time. I am a school teacher in Tennessee, and this legislative year has not been our friend. In trying to meet all the new obligations laid out for us(new standards,observations), it takes more time. Much more time. Imagine if your workplace implemented a new policy that included your boss walking into your work area/office with a checkoff sheet on a clipboard or iPad and evaluating your job performance for that hour. If you didn't perform all of the mandated tasks during that hour of observation, your score would be low, and you would be considered an ineffective worker. You might argue that some tasks didn't apply because you had completed them earlier, and the boss didn't see it. No matter, you are ineffective because the boss didn't see it. What would you do then? You would make sure that you included unnecessary things in your day just to be prepared for that observation that may or may not come that day. All this preparation takes time. That time has to be siphoned from other areas in our life. My area was this blog. Enough said.

2. Stress. Almost everyone I know is stressed about something. Our job is too stressful. The lack of a job is stressful. Family matters that we can control are stressful. Family matters out of our control are stressful. Sometimes, even the areas of our life which should give us peace and relieve stress contribute to it. Church should offer that sanctuary of prayer, peace, and reflection. But even churches are competing for members, so that is stressful.

3. Lack of Accountability. Deadlines and accountability are good. The best goals, however, are those I set for myself. Intrinsic goals. It is the lack of a preset goal that is dangerous to our passion. Every day that we live should be purposeful. Our passion needs to find a place on our to-do list. We also need to balance our accountability. I can't forget why I'm living in the first place.

I still have more to say about this, but I will save it for another day. My daughter, who also writes a blog www.theslowing.org, has a discipline that I will borrow. I will have a set goal-aka accountability- to post this blog once a week. Since the school year is coming to a close, you can expect an update every Sunday. When school starts again, I may have to adjust the posting schedule though. If I don't post, hold me accountable.