Farewell

Farewell: used to express good wishes on parting.

The thing about having major heart surgery is that it gives one pause. It suddenly occurs that maybe it’s time to assess priorities, examine lifestyle, take time to reflect. So it has been with me after undergoing quintuple bypass surgery in October. (My heart is fine, but my body is still upset about the indignities inflicted on it during the procedure.) Pain persists, but the rehab is going well. Still hope to play some golf this Spring.

I began blogging in 2017, shortly after I published my first and only book, “Aimless Life; Awesome God”. I had big plans of developing a large audience and selling a lot of books. Never happened. What did happen is that I “met” some wonderful people on WordPress. I read some of their books. I learned something about the flora and fauna of South Africa. I got to see some beautiful photos from around the world (including northern Minnesota). I learned some history. I learned to see things through the eyes of a Texan and learned about life and history in Iowa. I was introduced to a movie about a beer loving dinosaur-looking monster who wouldn’t harm a fly. We had conversations in the “comments” section of each other’s blogs. My world is bigger thanks to these new friends.

During COVID, I wrote one blog every Friday. Although that pace has slowed to a crawl, there are 239 posts on my page. I have 78 subscribers, but the truth is the average number of readers is about 6. I think I sold about ten digital versions of the book, which averages out to a little more than one per year. In reality, I’ve bought more books written by others than I’ve sold of mine. Not that I’m complaining, most of the books were good reads; well-written.

So the question is, is this something I should keep doing (and paying for)? Do I keep a personal website to promote a book nobody wants to read, and to feed my ego with a half dozen “Likes” when I send out a new post? If my purpose was to sell some books and glorify God with my posts, has that been accomplished?

The end of a year is a good time for new beginnings. I plan to shut down my paid site and give up my custom websites. I will downgrade to a free site so that I can keep up with the half dozen folks I care about, but it’s time to move on.

I did not want to leave without saying “Farewell” to those with whom I have developed a friendship; to walk out without saying “Goodbye”. God bless you all.

JustBobF

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

…a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

Ecclesiastes 1, 6b (ESV)

8 thoughts on “Farewell”

  2. I, too, have had many of the same questions you’ve posed about your writing and posting. The end-of-year stats for my blog reflect a similar condition. I, too, thought the website and blogging would translate into sales, but that has been disappointing. However, like you, I’ve been blessed by following others’ blogs, and a few of them also follow and comment on mine. I’ve come to the conclusion, though, that my writing is sort of like the boy who was throwing starfish back into the ocean after they’d been washed ashore. A man came up to him and said that his efforts wouldn’t make any difference. The boy picked up another starfish and hurled it seaward as he exclaimed, “It matters to that one.” Whatever you decide, may the Lord bless your decision in ways beyond your wildest imagination. Praying your recovery proceeds well and that you have a healthy and spiritually productive new year.

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  3. Because I’m mainly homebound, those I interact with most are on social media–mainly Facebook and Twitter/X (you’d be surprised at the Christian interaction on Twitter/X). You’re not on either one, so I’ll miss your posts.

    Those are both easy ways to make known that you’ve also written a book. Your on-line friends would likely share it with their friends, which is easier to do than from a blog post. If you’re already on, say, FB or “Twix”, it’s also easier for folks to interact with you.

    In your Amazon account, you can choose to offer your ebook for free for up to 5 days at a time. I just did that with the new book and more than 100 people downloaded it. If you did that with yours, many of them would read it, which is the goal! But you’d need to announce to your social media followers that it’s free.

    May you continue to heal so you can golf soon, and enjoy life beyond the computer. May God bless you, Bob and Marleen, in 2026!

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    • Robert, friend, you have enriched my life on Word Press and influenced me from reading your book. Minimally we will see each other in eternity. I also blog less and understand the winding down aspect of life, especially when sickness and pain is in the house. At least keep Journaling for the future generations. I suspect more than 6 read your thoughts….

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  4. I agree with Gary that you have enriched our lives with your posts on Word Press. I hope I can follow you on your free site. I am glad that you are recovering well and will soon be back on the golf course. I do wish you and your wife blessings in all that you do. Thank you for sharing your writing gift with us and your deep faith expressed in your posts. Happy New Year!

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  5. I love reading what you write! I’m like you, thinking about and evaluating the books and blogs and social media. Folks don’t like to read anymore. They want to “listen” to a podcast so they can multitask and do something else at the same time. That usually means they don’t pay full attention to what they are listening to or what they are doing. You are a thinker, you express yourself well, and I wish you all the best that God gives in abundance! The good stuff! The God stuff!

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  7. Oh no! I waited too long to reach out to you. :/ I fell off the planet for a bit. We flooded in the fall of 2024. By the grace of the God we’ve come through all of the twists and turns a little wiser, a lot grayer, and engorged with gratitude that God provided everything we’ve needed through it all. I am one of the ones that bought your book. I loved it. And you inspired me to write my own in the same style you used. Clean and simple.
    I was all the way up to chapter five when we flooded. I haven’t written since…I’m still displaced and writing in my prayer journal and doing lots of healing. The sister that was battling cancer passed last May. And so, the baby sister is all that’s left of our family. That would be me.
    Your book inspired me so! And we did exchange words back then. I had to be sure you knew! All of us who choose to share ourselves and our Awesome God with our writing really only hope to touch a heart or two for Jesus, no? Sharing my crazy story will certainly ring true with someone out there who’s paying the consequences of many poor choices in the same way I am.
    It’s true that we identify with each others’ messes more than our accomplishments. I’ve made plenty. Messes, that is. So I am grateful that God uses messed up people more than polished ones! And for that I am so very grateful. He’s using me right now, in a way I never imagined He would.
    So, Just Bob, I wish you well and will add you to my January 2026 prayer list for your continued healing. Blessings and Peace in Christ on this 23rd day of January, 2026. May the Lord bless you and keep you, make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May the Lord turn His face toward you and give you Peace.

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