A Decade Later: A Blog Anniversary

Sunset, January 18, 2020

Quotes from Martin Luther King Jr. have been everywhere this week - from internet memes to television broadcasts. One that arrived via my daily email devotional from Guideposts resonated with me:
 

If I cannot do great things,

 I can do small things in a great way.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Class Prophecy for Skyline High School's Class of 1975 predicted I'd be a writer at The New York Times by now. Since I'm a small-town girl through and through, I never bought into the vision some creative classmate penned 45 years ago.

At the time, I suppose we all envisioned that success was measured far, far away from the plains of Kansas. But maybe our 17- and 18-year-old selves were a little short-sighted. (Imagine that.)

Sunset, January 18, 2020

Even with the supposed wisdom that comes in living 60-plus years, I can still get caught up in measuring success by measuring numbers or by comparing myself to others. And it doesn't take long to figure that I don't add up. No, we don't have the biggest, most modern house. No, we don't farm as much as that person. No, I'm not the Kansas farm wife version of a super model. No, I don't have legions of blog readers or a line of cookware so those blog readers can adore me even more and clutter their kitchen cabinets with "my" cookware.

As I read Martin Luther King's words, a song we used to sing in the basement of the Byers United Methodist Church popped into my head. I hadn't thought of "Brighten the Corner Where You Are" for years, and I doubt I'd actually sung it since I'd belted it out from the yellow children's chairs lined up by the out-of-tune upright piano in the church basement. Even so, I remembered the words of the chorus, and when I found Burl Ives' version on YouTube, I remembered some of the verses, too:

Do not wait until some deed of greatness you may do,
Do not wait to shed your light afar,
To the many duties ever near you now be true,
Brighten the corner where you are.

Brighten the corner where you are!
Brighten the corner where you are!
Someone far from harbor you may guide across the bar;
Brighten the corner where you are!

Here for all your talent you may surely find a need,
Here reflect the bright and Morning Star;
Even from your humble hand the Bread of Life may feed,
Brighten the corner where you are ...

Songwriters: Robert Lee Black / Charles Hutchison Gabriel / Ina Duley Ogdon / R Price

Brighten the Corner Where You Are lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

 

This week, I celebrate my 10th blog anniversary. I first clicked "publish" on Blogger on January 24, 2010. Today was my 1,873rd blog post.

If I were doing this for the numbers, I'd have quit a long time ago.

But for the past 10 years, Kim's County Line has helped me track our lives on a five-generation Central Kansas farm. Having this avenue to collect words and photos has helped me to connect with our  heritage and this life in a new way. It's helped me pay attention. I've approached telling our story like the reporter I am. I take notes. I ask more questions. I want my farmer's "farm speak" translated in a way that makes sense to me so I can share it with others.

So often, we overlook the things that we see every day. It's like we're living life at 60 miles an hour, flying by familiar places and people, thinking we already know everything there is to know about these ordinary things that make up our lives and livelihoods.

Taken earlier this week

Even the most mundane, everyday things can cause us to pause in wonder. It may be something as simple as the morning light and a lacy curtain creating momentary art. The blog has given me the eyes to see how small, simple things are really the most important things of all. It's part of how I try to "brighten the corner" where I am.

 

Each quarter, I've compiled my blog posts into hardcover blog books. I got my latest one just yesterday, and I struggled to cram yet another volume into an already overflowing cabinet. But, for now, I will continue to write. I'll continue to tell the stories. And I want to thank those of you who come along for the journey - whether it's every time I post or whether you just take an occasional jaunt down the County Line.

It's my blogiversary, but to celebrate, one person will get a gift from me ...

• a selection of my photo notecards, or ...

 

•  a copy of "Count on It! Adventures from a Kansas Farm" my rhyming, farm-themed counting book, ...

• OR a revamped version of my farm alphabet book

To qualify, either comment about this blog post in the comment section of the blog or on my Facebook page, Kim Moore Fritzemeier. Or, if you have trouble with either of those avenues, you may email me at rkjbfarms@gmail.com. The winner will be chosen at random from the commenters. Enter your comment by January 31 for a chance to win.

Again, I thank you!

UPDATE

The winner of the blog anniversary gift is Eileen Loomis. She chose the ABC book. Thanks to all who played along, and most of all, thanks for visiting The County Line.