I know I have not yet completed the AtoZ Challenge, and thus am not yet technically qualified to enter my opinion with regard to adding a Reflection post on the topic.
But I’m interrupting myself to do a Reflection post anyway because that’s how I roll and when a topic nudges me and demands to be released unto the world, who am I to deny its existence? I’m just the writer / blogger, slave to the words. I can’t be held responsible for what they force me to say.
So then. A Reflection.
My sister and I walked a 5k-marathon one summer, and it was excellent. There were several runners who did the whole thing in like two minutes flat. Or it looked that way from behind, at any rate. There were some joggers who finished it in 20 minutes, and that was cool, too. My sister and I did a combo walk-jog-walk, and we got ‘er done at some point – which felt rad, BTW, since it was our first 5k.
Very cool fact: There were a bunch of walkers and crawlers and wheelers and kids and oxygen-bottles who came in behind us, so we weren’t dead last.
The most fabbo part of the day?
At least 75% of the people who crossed the finish line stuck around to cheer for everyone who came in after them. It was the best feeling of “Team Effort” I have ever experienced, like we were all in it together. So my sister and I stuck around and cheered, too. Which, of course, was a lot of fun socially, but moreover, allowed us to pass it forward.
I like marathons, and marathon-like challenges.
While there isn’t any pressure to Be The Best, there also isn’t any bar stopping you from trying to achieve First Place, if that’s your thing.
Likewise, there isn’t any booing for coming in Dead Last, which means it’s inclusive – all levels of skill are welcome. Competition isn’t shunned, per se, but you best keep it friendly and personal. This ain’t the place for Olympic medalists to hone their skills. We are all winners here just for showing up, and especially for making it through the entire ordeal.
Having said that…
I get that not all of life awards you a participation medal, and I’m glad. There is deffo a time and place for pushing oneself to greater heights: school, work, passions, relationships – these are all places where mediocrity is frowned upon, as well it should be.
I used to belong to a critique / writing group that meets weekly. They took themselves quite seriously. Which is fine – the group consisted of individuals attempting to polish completed novels, publish stories in magazines, become paid authors – you know, professionals. A small fee was required of members, and weekly attendance was all but mandatory. It was very grown-up and respectable.
I enjoyed going, and I appreciated the feedback on my work, and I loved offering my thoughts on the members’ well-written pieces.
But.
The meetings were an hour away. We only had one car. And we were broke. And the expectation of continued new written work on a weekly basis was TOO MUCH for me. I missed a couple meetings, and Just.Like.That I was dropped from the email list. I tried going back a year later, but the group had expanded and I felt even more out of place aside these go-getters, so I just gave it up altogether.
This was not a marathon, “participation counts”, experience. This was a mother-fucking sprint to the top, and the racers were very serious.
Please understand, I am not knocking my peers in any way whatsoever. I respect and admire their tenacity. It’s just not something I have {yet, if ever}. I’m a walker, not a runner. I’m a part-time hobby writer, not a professional.
And it shows.
Currently I am still finishing up last month’s AtoZ Challenge.
And that seems to be a problem for some people. The sprinters want the marathoners to drop out altogether.
Because they are professional AtoZ bloggers and participation is mandatory and there is a fee and meetings are held weekly and –
WAIT.
STAHP.
AtoZ is a fun challenge.
There are no professionals because participants do it for fun, and those who run the thing only get paid via comments, tweets, new friends, and experience. Participation isn’t mandatory – I’ve done it for a couple years now, and only completed it once, while the very next year I dropped out half-way through. I’m determined to complete it this time, but I’ll be limping over the finish line. {My continued effort is in no small part thanks to cheering me on in some comments and giving me a special shout-out to “Keep Going!” Completely unexpected and totally appreciated.}. And FYI, there are no fees and meetings.
I’m not sure why anyone is treating a fun challenge – a marathon – as though it’s a professional sprinting endeavor. You aren’t going to get a job out of doing AtoZ. Much as I adore this thing, the only benefits you get are on a personal and bloggerly level – none of which rates ranting at the people who can’t make it or who drop out.
I’ve heard the argument from several people that visiting a blog which is behind schedule, or which has quit AtoZ altogether, is a waste of time.
I have to ask, though, how visiting ANY blog is a waste of time, unless you’re visiting it for all the wrong reasons.
- Are you interested in reading a blog post? Then you didn’t waste your time, just because the topic isn’t what you wanted or expected it to be. Likewise, you didn’t waste your time any more than if you had visited a well-scheduled blog whose material you found to be NOT to your liking. You will spend more time complaining about it to the administrators, or leaving crappy comments, than by merely moving along to a different blog. Do you stop and complain, and then actively report, every single negative experience in your life? My goodness, what a poopy-pants you must be to live with! I wish peace, prosperity, and good health upon you, Negative Nancy, because clearly you need it. Or a second blog, maybe. That’s a thing, you know.
- Are you interested in making a new friend? Then you didn’t waste your time, because a blogger can be your friend whether s/he excels or sucks at AtoZ. I have lots of friends who never even get on the interwebz, so AtoZ is clearly not a litmus test for relationships. Similarly, I have several online friends who have never, and would never, engage in AtoZ, because they aren’t bloggers. Finally, I have many blogging friends who choose not to do AtoZ because {insert unnecessary reason which isn’t owed to you because it’s not a mandatory challenge so eff off}. Friends and AtoZ bloggers are neither mutually exclusive nor restricted. One, both, and neither ARE all three viable options.
- Are you interested in reciprocal commenting? Ohhhhh – well that’s a different story. See, you’re visiting the blog for the wrong reason. Just because you comment does NOT, in any way whatsoever, mean the recipient is required to return the favor. Would it be nice if the blogger hit you back? Sure, but you can’t demand it of him/her. Would it be better for your blog if the blogger hit you back? Absolutely, but most bloggers are interested in their OWN blog stats… not someone ELSE’S blog stats. See, expectation of reciprocal comments is a YOU problem, not an AtoZ problem. Leave me out of it. I would gladly give up every comment on my blog that came from someone who only left it with strings attached. Your numbers have nothing to do with my glitter.
- Are you interested in drive-by commenting? Dang it, stop that! Don’t leave me a comment if you haven’t even read the material upon which you’re commenting. That’s silly. And, per previous point, isn’t going to win you any favors with me. As a matter of fact, it’s more likely I’ll move you to my “Never Visit This Blog Like EVER” list. I’d rather have zero comments than 500 insincere drive-by comments on any post.
- Are you interested in winning some prize? Allow me to explain – I’m terribly afraid you have been operating under misguided expectations. For, you see, THERE IS NO PRIZE. Again, this is a YOU problem, not an AtoZ problem.
Basically, all this amounts to one thing:
You are free to do your thing, but don’t get bent out of shape at other people doing THEIR thing. My thing is more tortoise than hare:
Slow and steady wins the race.
Wherein “race” is against myself, not other people.
I will get to the finish line eventually.
If you’re still waiting around so you can cheer me on, so much the better.
But don’t waste your time yelling at me as you run by.
I might just be tempted to stick out my leg and trip you.
After which, of course, I will extend a hand and help you stand, because, unlike you, I’m not a total douche nugget.