Hello Grizzly readers. My name is Maggie Thornton. I am honored to be asked to contribute here at Grizzly Groundswell, and to be a part of this exciting new venture.

About me: On a very icy January morning in 2007, I knew I would not be venturing outside. My driveway was impossible to negotiate and had been that way for days. I had recently sold a business, had some time on my hands, and it seemed the perfect time to find out what blogging was all about.

My blog, Maggie’s Notebook, has moved along ever since – obsessively most of the time, excluding a 7 month hiatus in the first year to catch my breath. It has been a life-changing experience – just having the opportunity to have my say – and someone actually read. It was exhilarating to add my small voice to a political landscape which was already leaning dangerously left in January 2007.

I am married to a man I describe as a super-hero. We share a passion for conservatism, love of God, home, family and country. We like to think we balance each other. When he rants and shakes his fist at the television, I remain calm and suggest he send an email to the appropriate TV personality or politician. When I am livid at the latest Republican to extol the magnificent speaking prowess of Barack Obama, or see Newt Gingrich touring with John Kerry…well, my hubby steps in to make it all better. He points out newspaper articles, checks the Internet on his MacBook and keeps me up-to-date,  because there is so very, very much to read.

I have learned that you do not have to meet a person face-to-face to determine a person’s integrity, or lack thereof. When you read a blog with some regularity, you see a clear picture of the author.  When someone is writing everyday, they cannot hide their heart. You can write a book and hide who you are, but not a blog. So, this is what I see the blogosphere doing: lending voices of integrity – or not, and it doesn’t take long to separate the wheat from the chaff. As a reader and a blogger, I have found the most amazing friends among conservative writers, and faithful readers, who also lend their voices to the discussion. I am grateful for the experience.

So here I go…and we go, into this new venture, at the most dangerous time in my lifetime. I am terrified, at the same time that I am determined, that Liberalism will not destroy the Founding Father’s vision for me and my family.