I don't know about you - no wait, I do know about you: you’re
on Facebook. Anyway, my Facebook feed is
filled with so many stories that scare me and lure me in: Nine reasons why your water is making you sick! The fifteen most disgusting
places to vacation! Seven signs you have cancer and don’t even know it! The
three foods that will ensure your child does not grow up to be self- indulgent,
fast-food eating, lazy, cruel person! I exaggerate, but still. You get it
because on Facebook you get it too.
I don’t really have a list of 5 things for you to read. But I
thought the title might get you to click. I guess it did. Know why? Because it
sounds like every other title in your feed and it popped up right below a
picture of your ex-boyfriend’s 12-month old who is already potty trained. Dare
I say there is too much information at our fingertips?
When we are bored we scroll through the newest updates from
our 271 “friends.” While Facebook provides a connection it also provides a
window. It’s a window that was covered with curtains a decade ago, a window in
which only a handful of close friends were invited to look.
I was happy to have it when I saw my 30-some cousins at my
Grandma’s 90th birthday party. Most of them I had not seen in a
decade, but I recognized them and even their children, thanks to Facebook.
We used to exclusively write about our feelings in journals
and greeting cards. Now we can see the beautiful things couples write to each other
on birthdays and anniversaries; we see children grow with each birthday and
read the moving sentiment their parent writes. You see the homes purchased, vacations
experienced, the growing pregnant bellies. You see a lot and you and I can
start to think it is reality. Not just a piece
of reality.
We are created to learn from one another. The danger comes
when we do not filter what we are “learning.” In addition to all that fun stuff
your college roommate’s neighbor is doing this summer, she’s also taking out
the trash, fighting with her husband and treating a yeast infection. So keep in mind, while you are privy to So
Much More of the beautiful moments of your acquaintance’s lives, they still
have drudgery, just like you.
My life is beautiful, difficult, exciting, boring and just
plain life. I bet yours it too. So next time you scroll through that feed while
you’re cooking dinner and pouring milk for your toddler – oh that was me, you’re
probably doing it from a private island while pool boys respond to your every whim,
but anyway, chin up. Your life is beautiful, difficult, exciting and boring
too. None of our lives are as fantastic as they appear on Facebook. Go enjoy
yours!