What happens when you actually listen to your friends

A few weeks ago a friend told me I should start writing a blog. A couple nights ago I mentioned this idea to my roommate, in a, ‘haha, this person thought this but agree with me that it’s ridiculous,’ kind of way. That didn’t happen. My roommate thought it was a great idea. When people who know you well give you feedback on your life, it’s a good idea to at least consider their opinion. So, I’m trying it out here and we can see how this works out together.

Oh, dear.

It makes me nervous to think about having my thoughts and opinions floating around a place as public and out of control as the internet. The issue is not whether or not I have an opinion on a topic. ‘Kyla doesn’t have an opinion,’ said no one ever. I know I will have plenty of things to write about. But so many of my opinions are counter to the cultural norm, or based on very different life experiences from the people around me. I highly value discussion and can hold my own in a debate. But when it’s face-to-face, you can tell where the topic gets sensitive for people, you can answer their questions, you can express how deeply you value them regardless of your disagreement on the topic. It feels challenging to try to figure out how to communicate what I think, based on my experiences, theology, and research, in a way that allows for people to disagree respectfully and kindly without seeing them face-to-face. In conversations with friends, I’m not looking to change their opinion or theology so much as I want to challenge us to look at what we believe and see if it aligns with what Jesus taught, with how he modelled life for us. I want to learn how to do that through writing in a way that is honest and peaceable, so I’m starting with this blog.

I don’t have a theme for this blog, I don’t know how regularly I’ll post, that all feels too constricting when it seems like I care about a lot of things but don’t necessarily have the expertise or knowledge to speak conclusively to one topic. Having said that, I care deeply about equality: between races and ethnicities, between genders, between social classes. I care deeply about peace and non-violence. I believe that our actions affect others, so how we live our lives matters. I believe that the kingdom of God has come and we get to be part of enacting it here on earth. What it really comes down to is this: I love Jesus and believe that he actually meant what he said, and I want my values and practices to align with his teaching.

So, if you decide to keep reading this blog you can expect a little bit of theology, some opinions, and a bunch of questions that hopefully help us both better understand how to live into the kingdom of God here and now…or at least, that’s what I’m hoping for.

Let’s see how this goes.

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