I haven't been blogging much lately. It makes me sad when I log into the back-end of Southern Belle Simple and see that I've only posted a couple of times in any given month. Apparently some of you are still out there, but I can see why others might have moved along to more exciting online spaces, with fresh new content that is updated daily.
I think back to the good ol' days when I was posting to the blog religiously, at least five times a week. It's not that I don't feel I have anything to say anymore or that I'm thinking of shutting down the blog. Heavens no. Actually, there's so much more I want to say. So just what is my problem?
I blame the fact that my momma hustles. Stay with me now.
One time, years ago, I was having a conversation with my grandpa about work and life, and other things. My mom's name came up and my grandpa said these words: "Now, your momma, she hustles."
What he meant was that my mom is a hard worker who is always looking for opportunities to work a little bit more and bring home a little bit more bacon.
The dictionary defines hustle as to obtain by forceful action or persuasion. Anyone who knows my mom would agree that her special brand of persuasion is unique, but quite effective. Basically, she gets s#!t done. I mean that in the best possible way.
As long as I can remember my mom has worked. She's worked more than one job sometimes to ensure that our family had what we needed and then some. And of course my dad worked too, but with my mom it was different. She was always looking for ways to bring in a little bit more money for our family.
She learned it from her dad (the grandpa who so aptly described her in this way). He's hustles too. His first job at 16 turned into a career that he kept at for nearly 50 years. But all along the way he was always looking for ways to work a little bit more and bring home a little bit more bacon. And he got it from his parents who were the same way.
It's definitely not a greed thing. I believe my family has a hardworking mentality and I think they get a sense of accomplishment from doing a job well-done. Plus, it never hurts to have a few extra dollars in your pocket.
Now that my grandpa is retired, he gets to do more of what he enjoys but he still works at certain things and is always wheeling and dealing. And my mom will probably be one of those people who never actually retires, but just sort of transitions from one kind of work to the next.
That brings us to me. Being self-employed means hustling is the name of the game. In some ways this is really great because the sky's the limit. In other ways, it's not so great because it means there's always something else to do, some other person to call, some other email or bit of marketing content to write. But I love what I do. And I feel grateful for the chance to do it.
I've just been hustling so much to build my work-life, my creative-life has been a little on hold. This blog is the result of that creative life. I started it in 2009 when I was working at a job where I felt little to no creativity and was dried up inside. I needed to express something, anything and this blog is how it came out.
Over the past seven years, so many incredible things have resulted from it. It's the thing that's really and truly me. And when I don't do anything with it for weeks at a time, I start feeling sort of funny and sad.
I'm so glad I come from and was raised by people who are hardworking. I'm so glad I had the example of a mom who was always willing to take on a little bit more to make sure her family had a good life.
But there has to be a balance.
The creative stuff matters.
As my mom has told me more than once, "You gotta do the stuff that feeds your soul." I'm not sure what that looks like for you, but for me a big part of it lies in this blog. I hope that whatever it is that you enjoy, that thing that taps into your creative and beautiful soul, that thing that causes you to come alive....I hope you can carve out some time for that thing.
We all gotta hustle to some extent, but who says we can't obtain by forceful persuasion the things that make us feel like our real true selves.