This is my letter to the World
That never wrote to Me
--Emily Dickinson, #441, c. 1862

One wonders how the phenomenon of blogging might transform cultural history and how the past might have been different if writers and thinkers had access to such technology.  As I contemplate how to initiate my blog, my thoughts turn--as they often do--to one of Emerson's many memorable injunctions in "Self-Reliance":  "Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string. Accept the place the divine providence has found for you, the society of your contemporaries, the connection of events. Great men have always done so, and confided themselves childlike to the genius of their age, betraying their perception that the absolutely trustworthy was seated at their heart, working through their hands, predominating in all their being."  And so I resolve:  my blog will reflect my mind in the action of not only articulating, but trusting my judgements, reactions, and reflections.  For though I might impress you as quiet at first, my voice will surely grow in strength and confidence over time.