It's been just a few weeks and ten years since I started this blog, and it's about 4 years since l last posted.
I'm awesome.
I glanced at my previous post and in it I was belatedly (belatedly? Is that even a word? Apparently, as I did not get the squiggle underneath it...) announcing the birth of my youngest child (at the time) Ava, who is now--as of this writing--five. Again, I'm awesome.
I'm imagining most of you know about my current situation, so I'll just briefly go through re-introductions.
Me? I'm a 36 year old vegetarian Quaker ordained Minister with Universal Life Church, father of 4 (two girls, two boys) husband to 1, and a teacher of many, many grades (currently 4th). Oh, and I have a beard.
I have been wanting to write a blog for awhile, after being inspired by my awesome wife, (www.theconsciousdoer.com) but I was stuck by the issue of starting. I just couldn't see what I would write about.
But then I realized that I should write about something that takes up what is probably too much of my life, Social Media.
Backstory: When I was in college and for a few years afterward, I was really into karaoke. Like, at least once a week, sometimes twice a week, every week for 7+ years. I'm not even joking or exaggerating. It was awesome. The group that I went with was this amazing amalgam of really different people; there were university professors, college students, working folk, and a couple of people who defy categorization, although you could count the number of teeth in their head on one hand. Side note: In all of the karaoke places I've been to--of which there are many--it is those people, the ones who don't look like they belong there, who invariably offer up some of the damn finest singers of the evening. I mean, you look at these people and you just kind of shake your head, and then they get up there and your jaw drops.
Or, perhaps it's just me that does the judging beforehand only to be eating my words (thoughts) later.
Anyway, it was this incredibly tight knit group of people that we really grew to trust and cherish over the years. When I went on a 3-4 week road trip/vacation one summer, it was karaoke that I missed the most. When the woman that ran karaoke got married, we all were invited and--of course--sang karaoke at the wedding reception. (I sang "Love and Marriage" by Frank Sinatra. Sinatra was my jam. Well, Sinatra and Sir Mix-a-lot. )
I would sit and talk about the beauty of karaoke with some of my friends while we were waiting for our turns. It was this mixture of people that you couldn't find anywhere else. I mean, you can go places and find a wider variety of people contained within the same building or in the same area, but the people are not mixing, they're not getting to know each other. And that is what happened at karaoke. Really different people got to know each other and got to see what they had in common and that the differences--which were sometimes obvious (remember the teeth?)--just didn't matter so much. Not to come off as a hopeless sap, but it was a thing of beauty.
And this is what Social Media has become for me. FB, in particular, has been this opportunity to participate in this mixing of a wide variety of people on a regular basis. We have people who cover the spectrum of politics, religion, economic status, education, and where they are in life. This, to be totally clear, is why I ask my questions. I get such a kick out of seeing people from all of the different parts of my life meeting each other (albeit virtually) and discussing and bouncing ideas back and forth. It's cool to see people making connections over something sad that has happened, or supporting someone that they likely would never have the chance to meet in real life. I love to see the vast, vast array of experiences coming together to answer some ridiculous and silly questions, (and, perhaps, the occasional thought-provoking ones.) I love to see how someone I went to elementary school with knows someone I went to college with because they worked together for a summer 5 years ago. (Altogether now, "It's a small world after all....")
So, this is why when I'm driving down the road and I hear a segment on NPR that makes me pause, it also makes me think, "Hey, I wonder what Facebook will have to say about that." Or when i'm reading and I see a particularly interesting passage, I can't wait to type it in to see what connections might come of it.
Yes, this might be a bit sappy, but I truly, truly enjoy the relationships that have been forged through this approach to Facebook. It's been fascinating seeing all of my friends interact with each other (and me), but it's also been really encouraging and inspiring.
Which is why we should all get together and sing some karaoke.
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