"I'm giving up. I can't do this anymore."
The words barely echo the true hurt and frustration. Another homeschooler is experiencing burnout or worse. Life has conspired to cripple this individual, and in a last resort of cathartic expression a blog post is born.
Moved, I click over from my RSS Reader; only to discover the post has been removed. The internet remembers, even what we'd like to forget. I have, through the power of technology, caught a glimpse into a scribbled out experience of life. The blog author has "taken back" what they wrote. But what I don't know--and rarely ever see--is why the post was deleted. Did they feel too vulnerable? Did they realize they were merely feeling overwhelmed last night? Did they discover something that made them change their mind about the whole thing? And why, I wonder, did they publicly post it in the first place if they now feel it no longer appropriate to share?
I am well-acquainted with change. We update Sonlight every year, seeking ways to better serve you. This means that every year you benefit from what we've learned in the past. On the other hand, change is hard, and it can be incredibly frustrating too. In fact, we list our yearly curriculum updates as one of the reasons you may not want to buy from Sonlight. We make the changes and move forward. So I know things disappear and are replaced with new ideas and thoughts.
But "ghost posts" are different. They indicate some change in thinking. And it makes me curious: Why the change?
Have you ever bumped into a deleted blog post? Have you ever removed one of your own? What changed your mind?
~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester
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