Any guesses?

[Edwin]

Yes, Smiley, I was surprised at the number of people who actually belong to this forum. It didn't seem like we used to have that many birthdays listed. I think more people are joining all the time, and so there are many people who belong to the forum, but not many of them get involved in posting, starting posts, and responding to posts. If they knew how much fun it is, and what the benefits could be, I think they would be right on here, and a few of them do come on, and a few stay, but most I think just read periodically. We are happy that all those people read, and we are happy for the people who actively get on here to post and respond.

[Smiley]

Oh yeah,I think a lot of people are a little shy about posting for a lot of reasons.Some might be afraid of rejection,or even just hit a kind of stumbling block about what to post.
I think a lot sign up and forget how to get back to the group.
Still I think that we should be ready to welcome new voices to the group, after all, we were accepted.

[Edwin]

Very true, Smiley, we need to be ready to welcome any new member with encouragement. You are probably right about some not remembering how to get back. One of my twin daughters talked me into getting onto facebook, and I did, but I didn't accept any friends. When our daughter came she accepted herself and her son as my friends. I still didn't do anything with it. My wife used it, and I got credit for everything she did, as my name was on it. The she added her name. Then she took her name off, and got her own under her name, then a psuedo name. Then she had trouble that came to us from other people, and she got upset and got rid of her facebook. Now she uses mine again, but she usually always identifies herself when she writes something. A few times she did things like pass on, or share things that were not nice without realizing what it was, and we got scolded, and now she is more careful. I think some of that bad stuff that happened people thought it was me, but it wasn't!!!! Oh well, God knows. She was terribly embarrassed, but she also let the other people think it was me, they think I am terrible, but I'm okay, I will survive!

[Smiley]

I`m still fairly new myself when I see the number of posts I have made compared to some others.For the most part I feel that I have been very well recieved. My thanks to everyone here.

[Edwin]

You are welcome Smiley, from me, and I'm sure from everyone else. There was a time when I was so new that I did not have very many posts either. I think it is addictive, and it is fun to express yourself. It feels good to get consolation and help when you need it. People get on here, and ask others to pray for them in the needs that they have, and I think that is wonderful that this is the kind of place it is. I, like many others, like to tell my story, and this is a good place to do it. You express who you are here, and others can identify with you, with your experiences, and the things you enjoy doing that they enjoy doing also. Then often what one writes sparks ideas for expression from another person, and it is all good!

[Smiley]

I just logged in and I scrolled down to the bottom of the page. It says that there are over 270,000 members of this forum. Maybe its a good thing that they don`t all post We would never be able to find our topic.

[Edwin]

Yes, Smiley, I think the number of people belonging to this forum has been growing by leaps and bounds. I think many of them join, but they never participate. Some participate once, and then they are never seen again. Others get in and do like some of us here, posting almost every day. This is a good place, and the ones who don't participate don't know what they are missing!

[pichuck]

Well, this is my first time posting anything here, so here goes. I have been registered for some time now but I have never posted anything before because I am married. When I married my wife I loved her more than anything, but I realized shortly after we were married that she did not love me. I kept hoping she would fall in love with me but she never did. Now, after sixteen years of living with a wife that has never been anything more than a roommate that has never paid her share of the bills I have finally fallen out of love with her and we are now going through a divorce. It should be final by the end of May or sometime in June. Then I am going to the P.I. for a nice vacation and when I get back home I will start taking a more active part in the forum.

[Edwin]

pichuck, I am sorry about your troubled relationship with your wife whom you are now in the process of divorce. Welcome, and we are happy that you are getting active in the forum. It is hard to understand why one person loves another, and the love is not mutual, or not returned. We know a number of couples that way who live in the same house, but they do not act as if they are married. We have some friends, retired pastor and wife, who are like that. Even when they were pastoring the church they did not live as husband and wife, but they merely existed together with each other. They each did their own cooking, and they were respectful with each other, but there was no love there, no intimacy, so really kind feelings one for the other. They lived many years that way, and now they are both pretty old and not in good health, but they are still the same. They raised 3 lovely children, 2 boys and a girl, who went on to have families of their own, and I think each of them have great marriages. This couple will talk with each other, but barely!