I’m not going to participate in today’s one-word prompt and I’m going to tell you why.

I’ve been blogging on WordPress for about two months. Well, I should say that I returned to blogging on WordPress about two months ago, after a blogging hiatus of more than two years.

My previous blog, since deleted, was pretty successful. I would get hundreds of views a day, with dozens of likes and comments on every post. I had around 3,000 “followers” when I suddenly called a halt to blogging.

But my blog’s “success” took its toll. I was posting every single day — sometimes multiple times a day. I participated in a bunch of prompts from both WordPress and from other bloggers. I took the time to read the posts of those who liked mine. I would comment on their posts and I would respond to their comments on mine.

It was fun, but it was also very time-consuming. All encompassing, actually. I became obsessed with and possessed by my blog. It was virtually eating me alive. All that time spent posting, reading, and commenting almost cost me my marriage and my job. For my own good I needed to break the chain. So I abruptly quit (my blog, not my marriage or my job).

When I started blogging again two months ago, I promised myself that I wouldn’t allow WordPress to tether me to it like it did the last time. And yet here I am, posting daily, sometimes twice a day, reading the posts of those who like mine, commenting on their posts, and responding to comments made on mine.

When I read today’s prompt word, “tether,” I realized that WordPress has once again drawn me into its highly addictive web.

And that is why I decided that I would not respond to today’s daily prompt.

I’ll see you all tomorrow.