The Exponent is 5 years old! Celebrate with us by checking in with our latest poll. For all those regulars that have been reading faithfully, and all those that are just finding us and finding their voices, please share what it is that brought you to the blog, or even the bloggernacle at large. Was it a feminist or liberal awakening? Frustration at not having anyone else to talk to about certain issues? Did The Exponent fill a void for you? How have you grown from reading here and/or reading the publication that was the inspiration for this wonderful space? Share your stories with us. Don’t be afraid, we don’t bite. And all you veterans, come share your journey with those that are just starting out. We all have so much that we can teach and learn from each other in our shared and separate experiences. This is an exciting time to be a Mormon Feminist, or even just to be having a dialogue with those that claim the title. All perspectives are welcome here, respectfully given. Are we not women and sisters? (With a thankful nod to our supportive brothers out there) So come, share your voice as we celebrate 5 years of being a place that intersects faithful longing for change with courageous decisions to forge new and different paths, in or out of the church.
And if you want to explore a longer explanation of your journey as a feminist, consider participating in WAVE’s blog carnival. Details here.
I said I found it as part of my feminist awakening, but really what brought me to the ‘nacle at large was my desire to find other politically liberal Mormons. I had just moved away from my Wymount ward where there were a few of us and I was feeling lonely, especially after a very negative reaction from someone when they found out I was liberal. I had grown accustomed to a little more acceptance than that and it caught me off guard.
My search led me to FMH, which led me to BCC, here, and all the rest. These blogs were wonderful for me, especially the feminist ones, because I was just entering a place in my own journey where being a feminist and being a member of the church was creating more dissonance than I could make sense of on my own.
So glad you found us, Conifer. We love your comments.
I, as a founding member of the blog, have been here all 5 glorious years. It’s been a wonderful way to form community and lifelong friendships. Exponent is a precious part of my life.
Wow, the time has flown. Like Caroline and handful of others, I’ve been on board since the beginning . . . though back then I agonized about every post before I pressed post and got butterflies when I checked the comments. I’m certainly more comfortable with the medium five years in. This community has seen me through a lot of ups and downs in the last few years, and I feel very blessed for what I have gained from reading the stories of my sister saints and feeling their love and support.
When I moved to Chicago 10 years ago a friend invited me to the Midwest Pilgrim’s Retreat, where I learned that there was a similar, long-standing retreat in Boston called Exponent. So when I found the bloggernacle 2 years ago and saw a blog called The Exponent, I had to read it. And I’ve been reading faithfully ever since.
For me, the bloggernacle fills intellectual as well as social needs. Here’s a guest post I wrote at FMH about the social part, title “Blogging is my new girlfriend”:
http://www.feministmormonhousewives.org/?p=2711
I read my mother’s Exponent II when I was in young women– it fed me more than the stickysweet/absent thoughts of the YW program and quite frankly developed my testimony. I thought that ExII had ended with my mother’s subscription which suspiciously also ended when I left for college… at that time, I didn’t think to explore more ExII or feminist thought, because college was a whole new world and many of my classes explored feminist ideas anyway. I frankly forgot about it, but always esteemed it. A friend mentioned ExII at an MHA conference years later, so I began looking into it again at that time and rather accidentally happened upon this blog when ExII pingbacked a guest post I did elsewhere. It was kind of a long-lost reconsiliation to see it up and running, and I began collecting the ExII books of my youth (Still LOVE those!).
I don’t think that ExII fills a need for me as a feminist, but I do think it fills a need for me as a Mormon woman. I am allowed to express frusterations, seek revelation and sort through ideas here that I find are typically disregarded in Relief Society and church settings. I don’t find I have much time (or general interest) for the bloggernacle at large, but ExII interests me, if only because it was so important in my youth. I try to check ExII daily, even if I don’t allow myself time to read all of the posts or comments. I don’t like Relief Society and more often than not skip it (unless I am teaching- I know, so wrong), but I am filled by the lessons included in the blog here, and am filled by them. Don’t ever stops those!! I love the heck out of those!
Spunky, EmilyU,
Thank you for your stories. I love knowing that this blog has touched people’s lives for good.
Happy anniversary! I don’t recall for sure, but I think my sister Lynnette pointed me here just as you all were starting up. I’ve enjoyed your writing, and I’ve really appreciated how many of you I’ve gotten to meet in person. You all are a delight!
Found you a year and a half ago, through FMH. You filled a void when I was feeling very alone. Now when I am overwhelmed by my thoughts, in a click or two, there are like minds. It is comforting.