An Invitation to Let Me Serve You

Did you notice the new look?

After several years of “sunny” colors, I’ve decided to go in a new direction, and it’s not just with the way things look around here. I wrote a lot less – well, blogged a lot less, anyway – during the year that my dad was sick and for another year after he died, and that time pseudo-away gave me a chance to think about what I want to do with this space.

For awhile, I considered giving it up altogether.

There aren’t a lot of blogs by parents of older children with special needs, and I think I know why. We reach a point where a couple of things happen: (1) we begin to wonder if we should really be sharing our children’s stories with the world, and/or (2) we get a little tired of preaching about the disability issues we face and wonder if anyone’s even paying attention, much less considering our view or changing their mind about an issue.

But here’s the thing: my blog may have been inspired by my kids and include dozens (hundreds?) of stories about them, but what’s written here has always been my perspective. 

My thoughts. 

My words.

My writing.

You may have also noticed that although the domain name hasn’t changed, the logo has. I’m using my name instead and “Bringing the Sunshine” has become the tagline. Eventually, the domain will change, as well (andisligh.com already redirects here and has for some time). I intend to continue my theme of bringing light to the world, but “Bringing the Sunshine” (and the sunny color palette that went along with it) haven’t made sense to me for awhile. I DO try to look for the silver lining among the clouds, but I DON’T have a perpetually cheerful disposition or outlook, so it’s simply not an accurate reflection of who I am. I’m more of a realist – an “it is what it is” type of person.

In other words, not very sunny.

The old name has other issues, as well. It’s confusing, for one. I can’t tell you how many times people have struggled to recall whether it’s “Bringing the Sunshine” or “Bring in the Sunshine” – it even happens in Google searches. If people want to read what I’ve written but they can’t remember where to find me…well, that’s not awesome.

Using my real name makes sense for other reasons, too. I’m already “myself” on Twitter and Instagram (and YouTube, though I don’t have much posted there) and have updated the Facebook page. I’ve been published in other places, always under my real name. I also occasionally do speaking engagements and it’s much easier for people to find ME rather than try to remember my blog name after the event. The blog name is also getting in my way now because I want to work on other projects, like writing a book.

But a lot of things aren’t changing.

I will continue to write positive, feel-good pieces, because I believe life is beautiful. I will continue to write about heartache and pain, because sometimes people just need to know that someone understands the dark places deep inside them. I will continue to write about the triumphs and trials of my kids. I will continue to write about faith and family and fun. I will keep on writing, because I am a writer.

But it’s not enough just to write.

Every morning, I set an alarm, pull out a spiral notebook, and use a Pilot G2 pen with purple ink to pour out all of the things that come to mind, and yes, that’s writing.

But I want this space to be different – not a brain dump for me, but a place where you come to be encouraged, or to be comforted, or to learn things – so I invite you to shoot me a note to tell me what I can do to serve you. It can be today, tomorrow, or even a week or a month or a year from now – just do it whenever you have an idea or a thought or question and you think I might can help.

Please, let me serve you… and thank you for reading.