I wanted to have this post up hours ago. Yes, I do have a gift for
procrastination. But such was not the case
in the present delay. I was so amazed by today's guest blogger's accomplishments and her fearless journey of making connections within the
blogosphere, that I was left wordless.
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| About Kir...Kirsten Piccini |
In today's post, she so eloquently speaks to the power of the
relationships that can be made if we are willing to write with a truthful and
authentic voice that I have nothing to add:
“Her blog changed my own voice and her friendship changed my
life.”
The words belong to Kirsten Piccini of The Kir Corner.
The first time I came across
Kirsten’s writing could
have been at Just Be Enough where she is a contributing editor. Or, it could have been through one of the weekly
link ups in which I regularly participate.
Regardless, I am grateful to have found her and feel as if she has been with me since the beginning of Sperk*. She inspires me to do it better—every day.
I am positive she will inspire you, too! Be sure to visit her at The Kir Corner. Her list of successful endeavors is extensive and is born from humility.
Please welcome Kirsten Piccini as today’s guest blogger for
Wednesday’s Woman.
Wednesday's Woman: Melissa Ford
by Kirsten Piccini
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| Melissa Ford |
“I will love the light
for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness because it shows me the
stars.” –Og Mandino
In the middle of 2005 I started a blog to write about, vent
and talk about my struggle with infertility. I was searching for something or
someone that would help me make sense of what I was going through. I needed a community that was separate from
my infertility boards and a village that would guide me and help me grow
through the nightmare of not being able to have a child.
It was then that I met the amazing Melissa Ford of Stirrups
Queens.
She had started a blog called Stirrup Queens and Sperm
Palace Jesters which has been transformed to be simply “Stirrup Queens.” The
irony being that every one of us who has struggled against this invisible
disease has become a true queen of those stirrups, willing to risk our dignity
for the promise of a child in our arms. Her blog brought light into my life and
a comfortable place to ask questions and get answers to things that seemed too
private to ask anywhere else. It was also a haven for my heart, because the
women who came to that space knew exactly how I felt and were willing to share
their journey, successes and failures,
with me.
Over the course of her first year in the blogosphere she transformed
the life and education of infertiles, including mine. She introduced a blog roll that lists every
kind of infertility blog in our universe; from adoption to in-vitro, from
living childfree to information about surrogates.
52 Categories.
3150 Blogs.
She took the veil off our disease and gave it a voice.
As an infertility survivor and mother of twins born of
fertility treatments, she offered hope and friendship to me, and in between her
posts about infertility I sat in awe of her writing about her family, her
faith, her politics and of course her baking.
A writer by education she wrote a book about infertility
called Navigating the Land of IF that spoke to those of us exploring this new and very inhospitable world in
clear and relatable language. Plus it
was written with our family and friends who didn’t understand in mind. There
would be times that I would take it to my mom’s or give it to my best friend
and say, “Please read this chapter. You
won’t understand my hurt and frustration until you do.”
If you are infertile or you know someone who is struggling
with infertility, her blog is full of so much useful and real life knowledge
that you will walk away with the courage to keep trying and the realization
that you are not alone.
Her blog changed my own voice and her friendship changed my
life.
Today she is an editor with BlogHer, she has written another book called Life from Scratch
and she has been invited to the White House to talk about Health Care.
One of my “She-roes” is Melissa Ford.
So I name her my Wednesday Woman, for giving a VOICE to
infertility.
