I have failed you, the Progressive U Community. Most importantly however, I failed myself. I would like to take this time to apologize.
Two of the things that Progressive U offers us, is the ability to share knowledge and create a personal voice. (It says so in the FAQ) However, I have not done this. I have silenced my voice and in doing so I have not shared my knowledge, contributed much to debates, or even spurred debates. For this, I would like to apologize. By silencing my voice, I have rendered myself unable to fulfill the goals of Progressive U and, rendered you, the community, unable to participate in what makes Pro U so amazing. Pro U provides people with the ability to debate with each other, learn from each other, and feed off each other. This only happens when everybody participates actively. One can not take something without giving something back in return. But I have taken without returning. I have read through countless numbers of blogs, taking the opinions and information they offer. I have not offered much in return. I have not contributed very many blogs or offered up many comments. I have not returned. I apologize for this.
I know the reason why I have silenced my voice. I have built too many walls. When I first joined this site, I didn’t expect to silence my voice. I figured my voice would be just as loud as it is when I go to conferences where open-debate and the sharing of knowledge is the focus. The reason why I am able to do this there and not here is because those people I will never see again. Pro U is different. I may never “see” you, but I would still continue interacting with you. Any time human interaction with people I would “see” on a fairly day-to-day basis occurs, my walls come up and my voice never makes it out.
It is time for a change. I am tired of allowing my walls to silence my voice. I am tired of countless blogs wasting away on my computer because my defenses have deemed them unworthy of passing through the walls and into the public. So I am going to make a promise to you, the Pro U community. I promise that I will no longer silence my voice. I promise that I will take this time in-between contests, when those who really care stick around, to break down those walls, that way when the next contest comes along and new people join the community my voice can be heard. All I ask of you is that you be patient with me as I try and fulfill my promise.
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This is a great place to practice letting down defenses. Good luck, and we're all here to help you out!
P.S. I like what you have to say, when you say it.
http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/ediblewoman
I look forward to hearing more from you! You sound like you're a pretty experienced debater
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Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress. --Mahatma Gandhi
My Blog: http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/kablock
My PhotoBlog: http://takingpictures.wordpress.com
I like what you have to say! I must admit that I have done the same thing..... I went through a panic stricken stage where I deleted all my blogs because I found them not good enough for the public eyes.
I haven't yet written anything new.
Truth be told I avoided ProU because I never felt like I had something original to say, but there's a great line from the song "Move On" from Stephen Sondheim's Sunday in the Park with George:
"Stop worrying it your vision is new/Let others make that decision-/They usually do/You keep moving on."
It inspired me to start commenting again and letting my opinion be known. Well, not just the song, I've just been really inspired lately.