Thank You And Goodnight

Forgive me; it's been more than three months since my last post.

I actually wasn't going to write anything to formally put Betsy Transatlantically to bed, but some friends on Instagram (hey there, Amanda and Laurel!) pointed out that it would be rude not to, so here we go.

As I explained to my sister over Thanksgiving, I'm closing this blog because, after my last post about arrogance and humility, everything I sat down to write felt incredibly self-indulgent. The past five and half years of blogging haven't been free of narcissism, of course, but I also put a lot of effort into being part of a larger blogging community and that, in a way, tempered my navel-gazing. It's been a pleasure and a privilege to have built relationships with so many of you over the years, but I can't maintain them through blogging anymore, either here or, as you might have noticed, on your blogs.  That our friendships continue to flourish elsewhere online (and, occasionally, in person) helps me recognize the future of Betsy Transatlantically as not much more than a vanity project.

Sarah, who knows that I love writing, suggested that I could do so without an audience. But another reason I love blogging besides the community aspect is because publishing my words demands more of them - and of me - than simply putting pen to paper. Drafting and editing posts for Betsy Transatlantically has encouraged me to work through my thoughts on all sorts of topics, and the knowledge that they'll be out in the public domain makes me hold myself to a higher standard of exposition.

Over the past three months, I have at times felt compelled to find a way to keep writing online without being a blogger. I can't do that here; it would be too easy to fall back into old habits. So this is goodbye for Betsy Transatlantically. I might start up a new site eventually and, somehow, I'll let you know if I do. But for now - thank you. Thank you to you, dear readers, and a thank you to this blog as well for all that it's taught me.