"You cannot impact as many people writing on the Internet as you can by working in a job."

This, of course, depends on the job. I've never had a job where, on any given day, I actually had an opportunity to impact more than say 10 people in a day. And today, the type of work I would be qualified to do, is accomplished by much smaller teams than ever before. So, technically, I actually have more chances to impact via my little blog and my little network of friends in Second Life.

Years ago, though, God woke me up in the middle of the night. How do I know it was God? Well, because I am His and He is mine. I was simply wide awake. I got up and very quietly sat at my desk and wrote. I wrote about how I felt insignificant and doubted that I had the ability to draw a large enough audience to ever make a difference.

Then God gave me new lines to write. They were about the people I know because of the Internet. They were about the forums and the emails and the IM's I had traded with people. These lines were about how I do have the ability to say things in a way that certain people can relate to.

Finally came the line ... so what if ... what if I am only suppose to reach just one person somewhere? Would I write just for that one chance? And the answer is, "Yes."

Since then I have had many confirmations that what I feel is my calling is, indeed, my calling. I am to write intimate paragraphs that cut to the heart of the matter. Sometimes "the matter" is just simply to say "Look at what I got to see!" Sometimes I say, "Yes, you can do it." Sometimes I say, "There is a God who loves and provides." Sometimes I say, "Yes, but what about you? What will you decide about this man called Jesus? Have you read what He actually said?"

This is the bottom line for me: The Internet allows me to speak to individuals in a way that cuts straight to the heart of what matters to them. These days, I cannot do that in a job without running the risk of being fired or worse.

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So a few of you are probably wondering, "What's with this 15 min thing?" Well it's an old writing exercise i picked up somewhere along the way. Fifteen minutes – one topic. I don't use it often enough. I can't seem to move past this whatever I'm in with many, many fluid paragraphs. So, we're going for 15 minutes.

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A Second Life update.

(Thanks for caring :~)

Well. I did a little bit of searching through my options as far as the written word in SL goes. And I think I've decided on one route. In second life, there is a way to create little books. I will show you a pic of them one day. Really. I will.

One thing I will have to work on ... yeah ... well, it seems there are a lot of Europeans in Second Life. I've already had to promise to use better grammar and define the colloquialisms I use.

And I've found a couple of places where I can sell my books, photos, and furniture. Yes, even furniture. It's very cute. Okay, I will also get some pics of all of this – just as soon as it's all set up. Anyway, it's all rather tedious.

So, I've been practicing the selling routine. I now have three booths and one shop. The shop is a two-story shop on the Strand on Galveston Island -- THE SL Version. (The shop isn't set up yet.) I've only been selling a few of my photos ... at outlandish prices ... (too high for SL and slave labor rates in RL) ... and one table and stool set that Mitch aka Billy and I built together as a test case.

Yesterday, just for curiosity sake, I ran the numbers yesterday for the last 30 days. I was $3 USD ahead! I haven't even been trying! No, now don't go thinking I'll be telling Billy he can quit his day job any time soon.

Still, I'm wondering what will happen when I get my Strand Shop #10 set up. And what will happen when I have things to sell that the homeless in SL can use. Yes, there is a large population of homeless avatars in SL. This is not the same as being a bum. It just means they don't feel the need to have a resting spot that they can call their very own -- after all, avatars don't really sleep.

And ... The networking group is moving along.

I did finally realize ... yes, again ... so, we'll call it remember ... I did finally remember, again, that impact is actually why I feel I belong in Second Life. So, all I have to do is stop worrying that other people think I'm beyond weird.

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AND an update on Real Life. It is actually, finally summer here on the "Southern Fringes of Upstate New York." Yep ... shorts, fans, windows wide open ... the works! Oh and little baby dear that move too fast for my camera!

Talking to people over the Internet (IM, email, blogs) has much less impact than interaction face to face.

This is what I was told recently. The person telling me this was attempting to make it clear to me that he thought I was wasting my time interacting with people on the Internet. Me staying home and communicating with people through the Internet instead of going out and working in a job was a waste of my God given abilities.

I've been told this before by another friend.

I know they are wrong. I know the impact others have on me -- huge! I have watched people's lives change because of their encounters with me on the Internet. I do not mean this in an egotistical way. It is just the simple truth. I would love to say all the changes have been good -- I cannot -- most but not all.

One reason I feel so frustrated by this feeling of being both overwhelmed and mute is that I feel a loss of connection to the people who read my blog. It's not just the fact that my springboard for their discussion is gone. It is also that I have not been out to read their blogs. And there is a part of me that is hesitating in shame -- what joys and sorrows have I not been there to share?

I know they will welcome me back with open arms. I know they are my friends. Still ... what kind of friend closes her eyes to her friends' lives ... and am I ready for the impact?