‘Write what should not be forgotten.’

This quote, from author Isabel Allende, popped up as the sample text attached to a Canva template that I had just opened… and it knocked the wind out of me.

This was it!

This was why I’ve written so honestly, for so many years, and, oft-times, to non-existant audiences.

Because I didn’t want to forget it.

The good. The bad. The reality.

I mean, for better or worse, that’s what time does. It buffs the edges, and disguises with layers.

We think ‘Aw, it wasn’t that bad now that I think back on it…’ But all that does is dismiss your PAST version’s experiences. Ignores her pains and complaints.

And for me, to do that to her, feels kinda… mean.

That version of me had experiences that I want to validate. As does each new version of me that time offers.

Do I feel the need to wallow in past pains? Of course not.

But there is a strength to be gained in recognizing the challenges you made it through, and appreciating the struggles that created your resilience.

In the early years as a mom, before I even had a blog, I wrote about my experiences.

I wasn’t sure why it felt so important to write, but it did. So much so, that in between my struggles to balance life with a baby and a toddler, I often traded a shower for a couple of hours to write down my feelings and experiences.

It felt important to me to paint the clearest vision I could. To be a witness to it. To get it all down quickly before time diminished its significance, and paved over the dirt roads.

As cliche as it sounds, all of our experiences are important. They are what shape us. Which is why, when I saw that quote, it hit me so hard. Because the last time I wrote something new was on March of 2022.

Almost 2 years!

Just to say those words out loud is at once devastating and freeing. What have I forgotten since then? All the failures and success I experienced as as I figured out how to create a business and bring a product into the world. Those were no small moments.

The fact that this piece of me, who acts as a witness, had not been able to capture and validate the struggles and growth of ‘that’ Natalie, felt disappointing.

It made me realize how important being here, in this space, is for me. Writing allows me to release the burdens of my mind and allow the freshness of life to enter again and again. And also gifts me with a vividly realistic stroll through time.

But, why the need to share? Why don’t I just journal?

That, I think comes from my feelings of ‘Other-ness’. The long felt desire to find someone else who looked like me, talked like me, saw the world like me, understood me.

For someone to hear something they are experiencing reflected in another person’s experiences is connecting, validating and reassuring.

And while I’m not the best at promoting and marketing, at this moment in my life, the time I would devote to pursuing those things is eclipsed by my desire to be as engaged with my kids’ lives as I can be while they are at home. And that time is fast dwindling away.

So all of that other stuff can wait.

Now, when people ask, what is your blog all about? Why do you write it? You’re not making money off of it…so why?

The answer feels more clear, even to myself.

I want to bear witness to this life experience, and share it, so that others might feel more seen and understood, through feelings they recognize. And so that I may see myself with the compassion and understanding that I hold for others.