I have received a few mean-spirited messages recently about my Facebook activity. Now understand, I work with teenagers and I hear about these silly things all the time, but when people have attacked my character and my core because of my Facebook account, it kind of irritated me. It irritated me because of who sent me these messages; it irritated me because these people are allowed to say and do whatever they want (in whatever capacity they want, on and off screen); and it irritated me because while there are a lot of things I don't agree with the choices of these people, I still love and care about them and don't send them messages about what they're doing.
And these mean-spirited messages made me think about why I "post."
I understand that Facebook has changed a lot since I created my account almost 10 years ago (seriously, it's been around that long!) but, I still think the main reason it exists is to stay connected with people. I have friends who I personally like to keep tabs on and see all the cool things they're doing. I also have people in New Zealand who I befriended and without Facebook, would not know what is happening in their lives.
Why I post is really nobodies business and if they don't like it, then maybe we shouldn't be "friends" (how childish does that sound!?) (and to add, because of the nature of my work, no one can see anything I do on my social media accounts except those I allow in, so if you are my "friend" it's because I want you in my life and want you to know what's going on in our lives.)
I post, because as many of you know, Chris and I live no closer than 3 hours to our closest relative. Three hour drive to my Brother and his family. We also live a little isolated from other people in our area, so there are times where I don't talk to any body but Chris for a week or more. I post because I want people to see where we live and how we live. I post because we rarely have visitors and most people will never know what transformation our house has gone through.
Social media is a breeding ground for hatred and contempt and lies, and it can be extremely destructive. But it can also be a place to inspire, to share and to love. It can be a place where you can share your beliefs and your likes and your life. It is sometimes difficult to weed out the evil that is strewn across our screens every day, but I post because of the same reasons I joined Facebook to begin with, to connect with other people.
I post because I'm happy. I post because I'm sad. I post to know I'm not alone.
