It's here. There is no more avoiding it. Some people said it would never happen, ... but they were wrong. Science fiction dreamed it up and now we are living it. DANG! We now interact with each other more through electronics than any other method. Live contact (you know actually talking to each other face to face) is becoming rarer in our society. Social media and electronic interaction is king. Good or bad it is here to stay.
Good or bad? That's right, there is a positive to this new epoch in our lives. We can keep in better contact with the people we care about despite how far away they are in geography. My eldest just told a few hundred people on Saturday that the tradition of hearing her Dad read " 'Twas the Night Before Christmas" on Christmas Eve whether he was at home and in person or by telephone from a far off land or via video because his deployment didn't allow for him to communicate with us on Christmas Eve, meant the world to her. We stay involved with our friends and family even though they are thousands of miles away. I would say that that is a good thing.
Yet at the same time there is a flip side to this coin. Isolation and rejection have found their home here as well. Social media bullying has led teens (and adults) to suicide. It is just as easy to feel alone with 897 friends on Facebook as it is when you have no one to sit with at lunch. Even worse is when we feel alone in the crowd and surrounded by friends and loved ones. Feelings of being disconnected, and as if no one REALLY knows you or understands you haunt your thoughts. Whether it is real or only imagined, separation from others is the most difficult pain to bear.
Is the end in sight? NO, and there's no need to be melodramatic about it. Social media and electronic communication isn't a bad thing. It is just another means of communicating. That can be good or bad. We CHOOSE whether it will be good or bad. Gossip via a social network, telephone or in person is just as wrong and devastating as when it is done person to person. It is destructive, hateful and hurtful. DON'T do it!! It is the same with bullying, lies, slander, etc. On the other hand, we can reach out to those in pain and encourage them from thousands of miles away. We can share our everyday lives or a video call with a loved one. Social networking and electronic media are merely tools of communication. So, I repeat, it is all in how you use them.
Every moment of every day we have the choice to encourage or discourage those around us and ourselves. We all need encouragement. Any one who claims otherwise is lying. The are lying BIG TIME. They are lying to you and quite possibly to even themselves. Social media and electronic communication give us that opportunity to encourage those around you and be a part of their lives and inviting them to be a part of yours. So, let's take back the human, in human being and use our new methods of communication to encourage others and ourselves. Although it will never replace a good, old fashioned hug, it can still make someone's day.
Good or bad? That's right, there is a positive to this new epoch in our lives. We can keep in better contact with the people we care about despite how far away they are in geography. My eldest just told a few hundred people on Saturday that the tradition of hearing her Dad read " 'Twas the Night Before Christmas" on Christmas Eve whether he was at home and in person or by telephone from a far off land or via video because his deployment didn't allow for him to communicate with us on Christmas Eve, meant the world to her. We stay involved with our friends and family even though they are thousands of miles away. I would say that that is a good thing.
Yet at the same time there is a flip side to this coin. Isolation and rejection have found their home here as well. Social media bullying has led teens (and adults) to suicide. It is just as easy to feel alone with 897 friends on Facebook as it is when you have no one to sit with at lunch. Even worse is when we feel alone in the crowd and surrounded by friends and loved ones. Feelings of being disconnected, and as if no one REALLY knows you or understands you haunt your thoughts. Whether it is real or only imagined, separation from others is the most difficult pain to bear.
Is the end in sight? NO, and there's no need to be melodramatic about it. Social media and electronic communication isn't a bad thing. It is just another means of communicating. That can be good or bad. We CHOOSE whether it will be good or bad. Gossip via a social network, telephone or in person is just as wrong and devastating as when it is done person to person. It is destructive, hateful and hurtful. DON'T do it!! It is the same with bullying, lies, slander, etc. On the other hand, we can reach out to those in pain and encourage them from thousands of miles away. We can share our everyday lives or a video call with a loved one. Social networking and electronic media are merely tools of communication. So, I repeat, it is all in how you use them.
Every moment of every day we have the choice to encourage or discourage those around us and ourselves. We all need encouragement. Any one who claims otherwise is lying. The are lying BIG TIME. They are lying to you and quite possibly to even themselves. Social media and electronic communication give us that opportunity to encourage those around you and be a part of their lives and inviting them to be a part of yours. So, let's take back the human, in human being and use our new methods of communication to encourage others and ourselves. Although it will never replace a good, old fashioned hug, it can still make someone's day.
We've been heading this way for a long time. That is what my dear friend had in mind when he wrote the words "People talking without speaking/people hearing without listening". Much of today's media uses an entirely different language. I suppose most of uf can truly say we are multilingual...
ReplyDeleteAgreed. I originally wanted this blog to be about the increase in isolation with social networking BUT just felt driven to remind others that we are to encourage each other at all times.
ReplyDelete