A touch of Tuscany

This lovely book was a surprise loan to me from trevorearthy at our blipmeet yesterday. If you look closely you will see that it is entitled ‘Amalarian in Tuscany’. Our very dear Molly who left us suddenly 8 years ago this year.

It was made posthumously and with the addition of a prologue and a selection of some blippers comments showing what she meant to them, it is a catalogue of her blips from when she started in Feb 2010 ( just two months before I started blipping) to her sudden death in May 2011.

It set me wondering what made her so special to so many blippers over that relatively short period.
I was initially attracted by the location and seeing blips of that stunning area of Italy but it wasn’t the photos that made Molly special (she liked to be known as Amalarian her mother’s name as she hated Molly) it was what she gave through her writing and her generosity to fellow blippers.
She was a writer and wrote for the ‘Scotsman’ though her origins were as a journalist in her native US. I have learned that she was in her 80’s and therefore her sudden death wasn’t perhaps quite such a surprise but it certainly had an impact on many people.

She was generous in her comments and stars (remember the 5 stars that people were so reluctant to give!) This started me thinking what blip should be. I would probably never have met Molly and though it’s great to have blipmeet like yesterday, we can reach out and make good relationships though blip without ever meeting people. This is what Molly did and so many good blippers do. We’re all short on time and have periods where doling out stars or bland ‘beautifuls’ has to suffice, but putting more into those comments makes all the difference and makes blip special. I understand people having times when they have to turn off comments but that lack of ability to respond beyond a star or heart detracts so much from what blip really is. It’s much more than a personal diary or record or at least I feel it should be at its best.

Molly was given an ‘Honorary Lifetime Membership’ and her journal will always be available to access on blip. I still have her blips on my ‘following’ pages but it is lovely to see them presented in this book. A fitting tribute to her and what blip can and should be.

Thank you again Trevor for bringing this for me to enjoy. (Perfect for a dull winter Saturday) I will take great care of it until we meet next time.