Reach Out & Touch Someone

I was recently presented with a lovely award and asked to pay it forward to 15 other bloggers. I was thrilled, elated, people actually read my blog and someone liked it! After the initial euphoria passed, came the thought...I don't know 15 bloggers, no make that 30 because my cooking/recipe blog, Cucina Nanette, was also given the award. How do I go about this, I fretted? Find blog sites I like & contact bloggers...Could I find the time? After all, I have 2 blogs to "run", my activities on CookEatShare.com (more fretting), a full time job, a home-life that keeps me busy. That's when I heard that God voice in my head..."Wait a darn minute, Nanette." Does God say, darn..I think He did?
Wasn't it a short while ago that your wonderful friend, Mary (Beautiful Gate), mentioned in one of her posts that it would be nice to  reach out to new bloggers and let them know that someone is aware that they exist...actually cares? Wasn't it Vic & Bernie that agreed, saying that bloggers need encouragement....our encouragement? Mary stated that many bloggers feel ignored, they write and write and no one comments...no one cares. Hurt and disillusioned, some "close up shop".
How sad and even sadder if it involves Catholic blogging. Where's Christ in all of this? Aren't we, His messengers, supposed to lift each other up? Encourage the talents he/she has been blessed with?  Bring joy to a "stranger"? Yes, yes to all these questions. I had the opportunity to do all these things and I was fretting? Shame on me.
So where to start? I went to the Catholic blog directory and began searching. Gems were everywhere I looked. Eventually, I had the blogs I needed...some of them new ones, the ones with no comments, yet. I recalled the first comment I had received and how thrilled I was, now I wanted someone else to experience the same feeling. I even threw in a few not-Catholic bloggers, after all, the apostles didn't preach just to followers, right? So through this I met Maria of This Crazy Life, Mike at My Life and Such, Margo at the Rosary Trail, Grace Marie at the Rustic Home, and other dear, dear bloggers.
I can't reach out to every blogger in the blogoshere, but I can make an effort on a regular basis..and if you reach out to 5 bloggers, and someone else reaches 5 more..just think how many bloggers we can touch. Just think how we are serving God.
So, the invites went out....and I kinda held my breath. Would anyone accept the award....would I get a , "Who the hell are you?" response. I had nothing to fear....the response was terrific! Even Mike, who I thought might say, "A Lovely Blog Award" with a rose and tea cup badge...are you kidding? said, "Wow" and would display it proudly.
Have there been rejections...a few. Would it have been polite to have accepted it and passed it on to just two other bloggers. Yes. But I'm not here to judge...that would be unkind.  Then there are those like Claudia (Pegasus Legend) who is so, so , so busy, who graciously accepted it, but said it would have to wait a bit because of her schedule. Perfectly fine. This is supposed to be fun, not stressful. Send it to 3 bloggers instead of 15....and at your leisure.
This is a random act of kindness. I think God is pleased with the idea and the space we make in our hearts for others. Mary, Vic  & Bernie hit on something God-Approved....to encourage other bloggers to use the talents they are blessed with. To show strangers, as well as friends, that we care. We should always be looking for ways to bring Christ's compassion to others. We are Catholic-Christians, we are obligated to go out of our way..to be inconvenienced sometimes. If I am blessed, then I should be a blessing to others.

also check out: stblogsparish.com  &  catholicconverts.com for new bloggers

Blog Award

Many thanks to Mary at the Beautiful Gate http://openingthefloodgatesofmercy.blogspot.com/ for sending me this award! I am so proud to receive this lovely gift.

Here are the rules for passing it on

1. Accept the award. Post it on your blog with the name of the person who has granted the award and his or her blog link.
2. Pay it forward to 15 other bloggers that you have newly discovered.
3. Contact those blog owners and let them know they've been chosen.

I'd like to pass the award on to the following great blogs:

Patti at Abba's Little Girl http://abbaslittlegirl.blogspot.com/

Grace Marie at From The Rustic Home http://fromtherustichome.blogspot.com/

Lelia at Little Catholic Bubble http://littlecatholicbubble.blogspot.com/

Mike at My Life and Such http://mikeshaw65.blogspot.com/

Margo at The Rosary Trail  http://therosarytrail.com/

Maria at This Crazy Love http://andyourlifewillbefilledwithsunshine.blogspot.com/

Karen at Gem Of The Ocean  http://gemoftheocean.blogspot.com/

Patty at My Apologies http://freakinominalblog.blogspot.com/

Kerri at Sea Cottage http://seacottage.blogspot.com/

Julie at Hand Me Down Heaven http://juliecragon.blogspot.com/

Kasclar at Journal Of Nobody at http://journalofnobody.blogspot.com/

Carrie at Ouite The Normal Life http://quitethenormallife.blogspot.com/

OLR Dad at Will There Be Donuts? http://willtherebedonuts/

God Bless Catholic Bloggers and all that you do for God's glory.