A Thank You Letter

Wow. I wrote nothing all day, and still got almost 400 page views... when I actually write, I get [lately] 600+. Should I be flattered? Or are people just really, really bored at work/college? Anyways, I'm kidding - just thought it was interesting; and I'm flattered that so many people are coming here to read this blog.

So, why do I say all this?

This post by MCAryeh. He has begun recapping all the blogs he reads, giving a short summation of the bloggers and their blogs, and then links to 5 posts written over the last 6 months, plus a "bonus" post from this month. He reviewed 8 blogs today, including three I normally read (Stacey, Jameel, & Mirty), and five I do not: House of Joy, Elster, Suburban Hymns, A Simple Jew, and Wilderness City.

And I was blown away. I sat here for over an hour, reading (almost) every. single. post. Happy, sad, touching, ripped from the heartstrings... These posts were amazing. They made me think about my own posts, and how they are never like this. That's not me. I'm guarded. I can't write like this. I'm not anonymous. I am, even on my own blog, in hiding. I...

No, wait. I am me. I don't write those posts, because I can't. I'm not that talented of a writer. I can't stuff years of heart-wrenching emotion into a paragraph. It's a gift: A gift I don't have. These eight writers show flashes of, if not outright, brilliance in their writing - in their ability to draw you in, to let you feel that which they are feeling, to force you to see that which they see.

I don't know how to express in words the warmth of Stacey, the radiant happiness of Beth, the simple wisdom of ASJ. I have my own strengths, and thank God they're many. As one friend noted to me today, after I told him yet another incredibly fortunate story that happened to me, "God loves you." I responded "'Look at my name." "Eliezer! [My God helps!]," he said, smiling, realizing; "Eliezer Chaim [loosely: My God helps my life]," I said back.

While none of us are blessed with every gift, it is wonderful to have the opportunity to appreciate those individual gifts people have. People are often enamored by those who resemble a life they would never want to lead. People can be almost obsessed with a star basketball player whose quickness and leaping ability cannot be matched. People are spellbound by a man on the streets of Manhattan who draws beautiful paintings with nothing more than spray paints and little tins. Why? Simple: He can do something that others just cannot. His talent, however trivial, is above the norm. Not everybody can do what he does.

Therefore, I must say thank you to MCAryeh and the others. Thank you for writing such beautiful stories. Thank you for sharing with us your gifts. Perhaps most importantly, you are wonderful reminders to use our own gifts.

Thank you for being an inspiration.