Oh, how the world has changed. When I started archiving thoughts in this space, Facebook and MySpace didn’t exist… Google wasn’t a public company… and the still-novel 5 GB iPod had just fallen below $300.

Just as the web and the world it reflects have tectonically evolved in a few short years, so too has my use of this tool. And in recent months I’ve found myself neglecting updates in light of more immediate to-do list commitments. The hindsight of a few months of life beyond the undergraduate years, however, has afforded me two recent realizations:

Writing is a part of who I am. Various seasons of life have provided different motivation to pursue this habit–from recording travel adventures, to responding to coursework, to searching for humor in the daily motions–but I know that the fulfillment that flows from this exercise transcends causation. When circumstance robs me of this creative outlet, I sense a piece of me isn’t living.

Some things get better with time. Changing commitments to this space have often tempted me to dispose of earlier juvenile content and begin again with a clean slate. Though rough edges remain, I can’t bring myself to demote the inflection points contained in these bits and bytes: reaction to the start of a war I’m now fighting… ruminations from high school… vignettes capturing new continents, lost friends, and rising hopes. Even if I can’t always contribute new thoughts, I trust these old memories still echo some piece of truth’s puzzle.

And so, while I remain uncertain of how this canvas will be woven into life’s newest chapter, I stand convinced that this space has purpose. And I’m not done with it yet.

Thanks for being a part of the journey.

John Deniston
October 2007

P.S. I recognize the reading difficulty of this format–to enjoy lengthier posts, I recommend you visit the RSS feed.