Diving In

Hi folks! Welcome to my new blog, Contagious Courage. It is my pleasure to have you here and reading my introductory post! You could say this was years in the making, but when it comes down to it, I had to decide whether I was going to take all the ideas, requests, and encouragement and actually do something with it, or if I’d just let this “someday” stay as it was. So after a few months of research and a couple weeks of brainstorming, I decided to dive in. (Thanks, Steven Curtis Chapman!)

My natural tendency is to be on the initiator, starter, creator side of things, not a manager or maintainer of things that already are. But, I know that healthy pressure and accountability will keep me going in this endeavor! So I’ll share a few of my goals and purposes for this blog right here for the world to see, and trust that the friends and family that encouraged me to “write your story!” will spur me on, as they have been since college.

Let’s start with why I chose to start a blog. Firstly, I have a wonderful community of family and friends who I genuinely desire to stay in contact with as most of them are in the US, and our family is living in southern Zimbabwe. Secondly, I don’t post a lot on social media platforms at the moment, which is just a personal decision that I may or may not carry on with. Thirdly, I felt like a blog fit my personality and goals better than a newsletter, group on social media, or a podcast, at least for this first season of learning to stay in connection with an audience.

What exactly are those goals that I think a blog would help me achieve? Well, it would be my absolute pleasure if the content I create could:

1) connect me to friends, family, as well as new readers and visitors;

2)  allow me to sharpen my photography and written communication skills and have a creative outlet;

3) Share stories of courage- whether people’s courageous acts of the past or something they’re stepping into now.

4) share my family’s story as well as guest stories that highlight God’s movements in our lives and give Him glory; and

5) Be one of the many spaces where people of various backgrounds, cultures, and walks of life can see the similarities in each others’ stories, appreciate the differences that make us unique, in a light and humorous but respectful and meaningful way, and help one another catch the bug to be courageous!

Yup. Those are my goals. No big deal, hey? Wrong! I have big dreams for this little corner of the web. I’ve got no shame in beginning with this fledgling of a page, and praying God uses it in major ways!

So, now that I can’t turn back and this is posted, what can you expect to see from me? Family-wise, I’ll be sharing twice a month what’s going on with our family in our neck of the woods, near Matopos, Zimbabwe. But what I’m most excited about is the other stuff I’ll be doing! Weekly, I plan to share a photo of someone in my community and a bit of their story, always highlighting their courage but having them answer other questions too. (Who doesn’t love Humans of New York!?). Then there will be the occasional bonus post, consisting of my simple thoughts on life as I’m experiencing it as an expat in southern Africa … whether that’s something tough I’m learning to adapt to, something humorous I saw, or another random tidbit I think readers would enjoy.

As I get into a routine, I’ll be curious what readers are enjoying most, and perhaps will adjust the content I focus on most based on what types of post pick up the most traffic!

Well, that’s all I’ve got for the introduction! Thanks for reading and starting this adventure with me!

With Growing Courage,

Mackenzie