For a while now I’ve been thinking about commenting on the comment. At the end of every post there is a section devoted to the purpose of capturing a few thoughts by the reader. It is a place where we express our impressions, offer up an opinion, and often ask a question that probes deeper into the story. There is nothing that compliments a good post more than a few well thought-out comments by the reader. But on the other hand, bad judgment and incompetence from the commentator can ruin a post, leaving an embarrassing place no one wants to return to.
Sometimes you can tell by the comment how much we enjoy renewing connections with each other. I think most of the time family members are just hungry for news and we tend to ask a lot of questions in order to keep the dialog going. Especially for me, having lost so much time from the family, I enjoy reading your posts more than I can tell you.
For the writer, feedback we get from a comment can be encouraging. Everyone likes to think that his or her stories and essays are interesting for the reader. Those of us who are beginning bloggers have that deep-down fear that what we write isn’t very good, and it always makes us feel better after an encouraging comment or two. Writing becomes easier when we know the reader cares enough to respond to our thoughts.
Once in a while the comment section turns into a forum of debate. This usually happens when politics enter the discussion, but it can also involve preferences for various electronic devices and mobile phones in particular. It’s usually lighthearted and takes the form of kidding more than anything else. (Did I hear today that Apple will soon release the iPhone to Verizon?)
For me, the art of commenting is not my strong suit. All too often my comments have taken an underlying twist of meaning. I try to be cute and it comes out degrading; I try to be funny and it has undertones of sarcasm; I try to be witty and it turns out silly. Honestly, it’s never my intention to say anything that would hurt anybody’s feelings; it just comes out of me and I can’t control it. I know I should never write anything late at night and hit the send button before I’ve had a chance to proof read in the morning. To show you how twisted and warped my sense of humor is – I was thinking of posting this with comments closed!
Closed comments…no way! I love when I get comments on my blog because I then know that people are actually reading it, which makes me happy. I have noticed that since I have joined facebook I get fewer comments then before.
Personally, I think you are a great writer Dale and I love to read what you have to say or write I mean. I check blogs a couple times a week and I am disappointed when there is nothing new. So keep them coming!
Dale — We all sometimes wish there was a retract button on the comments, but there isn’t. The only person who can make any changes is the owner of the blog. More than once I have asked the owner to either make corrections (I hate it when I find a spelling mistake after posting) or delete a comment altogether.
Written words are always subject to misinterpretation. But I don’t think any of us are ever critical of each other — it’s just sometimes misinterpreted that way. Yes, some of us use our blogs for more political issues than others. I always read everyone’s posts, but I choose not to comment on some at all. There is nothing wrong with that.
The bottom line in my mind is that we are all family. None of us would ever say anything purposefully hurtful or mean to another. You’re right that there is sometimes some good-natured kidding that goes on too, but no one means anything by it. Trust me when I say that I have never taken any of your comments to be mean or hurtful in any way. Silly? Sure, but that is always welcome and fun. Keep on posting and commenting, and don’t worry about it. We all are so pleased and grateful to be able to share our lives with you, and to be able to share in your life. We have all lived without each other for way too many years.
I love you, brother.
Thanks for your kind words, man. I love you too.
You will never know how good it makes me feel when I find a new blog entry that you have posted, or when you send one of your longer stories on some of your trips. I read them over and over, and it makes me feel closer to you. You are such an gifted writer–maybe the best of the whole family (granted, sometimes an editor could improve a sentence, according to Barb, who was qualified to comment, after being in the newspaper business for so many years). I love them the way they are; everything that you write is so you! I think some of your articles could be published in the appropriate magazine, etc.
I’m not prejudiced, just honest.
I think your comments are always funny, Dale. Or at least when you mean them to be. I don’t think it was funny when you asked Daryl and Don how to connect your phone to the internet, but when you poked fun at Daryl for falling while playing basketball, that was funny. I really love seeing your name on my blog page.
I think they’ve said it all here. I have never read your comments as sarcastic or negative in any way.
Though it’s been 40 years since we’ve spent a lot of time with you, I think we still know you well enough to see the meaning behind your comments. I can’t ever remember you intentionally hurting someone, and I read your posts and comments from that perspective.