Tomorrow is my 3 year blogging anniversary!

Tomorrow, September 3, marks my three year anniversary for blogging.  Wow!

Each year I have written an anniversary post and each year I print out the year of my blogs to keep in print.

This year will be no different.

I continue to be amazed and humbled that there is any readership of my blog.  I am more amazed and humbled by the wide readership across the world.

Just this past month of August, the hits were an all-time high of 2,770 for the month. 

This post makes my 310th post.  310 posts in 3 years?!?! That's correct.

Now, for the typical statistics that I report each year.

Per the overview page, the most popular posts have been:

 1. Thoughts and Quotes from Jesus Calling over the last few days and weeks... (November 24, 2011) [1435]
 2. Several hours at the creek... roaring waters and waiting (March 12, 2011) [241]
 3. Some thoughts on hospitality... (May 30, 2011) [199]
 4. Academy #32 Tú has venido a la orilla (October 3, 2012) [196]
 5. Jesus Calling--January 1, 2012 (January 1, 2012) [181]
 6. "A Space of Love"... quotes and references from Macrina Wiederkehr's Chapter in Abide (May 15, 2013) [165]
 7. Comic strips and children's books... (January 31, 2011) [164]
 8. Thomas Merton quotes... silence, solitude and no idea where I'm going (May 11, 2012) [140]
 9. Dos Amigos Mexican Restaurant (April 4, 2011) [138]
10. Marcela Gándara's Music ministers to my soul (March 2, 2011) [113]

The top 10 countries currently are:

 1. United States
 2. Russia
 3. United Kingdom
 4. Germany
 5. France
 6. Canada
 7. Poland
 8. Sudan
 9. Latvia
10. Ukraine

It is amazing to note that Sudan is still in the top 10, considering that my readership in Sudan is no longer there.  That is, unless there are others in Sudan reading.  I recognize that there is a slight possibility that someone in Sudan might be reading, but I only knew on one.  And, that one had Sudan at #5 last year. ☺  The odd thing about Sudan is that when it was #6 in April, it had a total of 389 hits and now at #8 it only has 375 hits.  So, somehow the number of hits is decreasing with time.  I honestly don't understand the counting system here, but it's not about numbers anyway.

It is an amazing feeling to connect with folks across the miles through writing.  It is amazing to connect with folks through writing.  Period.  Especially when you didn't really start out attempting to connect with others, but simply started writing to work through the "stuff". 

I have been blessed to connect with others and dialogue because of the connections. 

The top 10 countries listed above are those countries with the most hits overall.  They are not the only countries from which folks are reading.  Here are the countries that I have tried to keep up with throughout this year.  I will hopefully not list a country more than once.  If I do, I will hopefully catch my error and edit it.  If not, then there is hopefully grace extended on the part of the reader.... and from me to myself. ☺

Countries: (67 total)

South Korea, Poland, Lebanon, Morocco, Norway, Panama, Ukraine, Netherlands, Switzerland, Benin, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Brazil, Australia, Latvia, United Kingdom, Chile, Armenia, Malaysia, Serbia, Kazakhstan, Oman, Algeria, Lithuania, Paraguay, Malta, Pakistan, Albania, Honduras, Colombia, Venezuela, Georgia, Tunisia, Nepal, China, Saudi Arabia, Costa Rica, United States, Peru, Sudan, Slovenia, Sweden, France, Belarus, Kenya, Thailand, Indonesia, Canada, Philippines, Russia, Japan, Egypt, Croatia, Puerto Rico, Turkey, South Africa, Trinidad & Tobago, Fiji, Germany, India, Guernsey, Ghana, New Zealand, Bulgaria, Sri Lanka, Ecuador, Cambodia, Denmark, Romania, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Estonia, United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Czech Republic

I don't know if I caught them all throughout the year or not, but it looks like I may have added some new places but lost some from previous years.  Because of my interest in languages and cultures, the wide variety of places interests me and captures my attention. 

The monthly readership over this past year looks like this: (per the overview page)

September (2012)-- 1,260
October-- 1,106
November-- 885
December-- 1,222
January (2013)-- 1,547
February-- 1,471
March-- 1,912
April-- 1,939
May-- 1,533
June-- 1,342
July-- 1,739
August-- 2,770
September (so far, as of this writing)-- 242

I continue to write about my journey-- my faith walk, my joys, my struggles, my ministries.  Songs, quotes, books, pictures, people, and sermons that inspire me often find their way into my writings.  There have been an occasional book or restaurant review.  My own sermons make their way here.  It's a free-for-all hodge-podge buffet of whatever happens to be going on in my life, I suppose.  It has been and continues to be a way for me to work through my spiritual journey.  I didn't realize at the beginning that it would become a spiritual discipline (practice), but it has.  I don't know whether or not I'm honing my writing skills in the process or simply writing. 

It has been a beneficial part of the journey for me and I'm glad I took the step of faith back on September 3, 2010 and started this part of the journey.

Thank you to those who've encouraged me along my faith journey and along my blog journey!

Whatever you're hesitantly holding back from doing, I encourage you to take that step of faith... NOW!  Who knows where it will lead?!?!?

Blessings on your journey!

Debra