So… I’m back. :) That’s the story in a nutshell. If you want more details, keep reading…
I have been thinking and thinking for weeks and months about Facebook. I originally joined just after we were married as a way to keep in touch with close friends from college that I didn’t get to see as often as we would all like. I started with ten friends, maybe. Now, almost four years later, my friend list had grown to 400ish, and I’d venture to say that more than half of those people were people that, apart from Facebook, I’d never even talked to. I loved posting pictures and getting comments from family members and friends who love Eli and like to watch him grow, but I found that the bulk of my posting was done not for the benefit of other people but for my own benefit. Who will comment on this status? What will they think of me when I post this? How do I measure up?
And, for me, this was just plain wrong. I was comparing myself to others every time I was on Facebook. I was feeling unworthy and less-than as I read about fantastic friends doing fantastically creative things with their fantastically adorable children. I was feeling proud and worldly when I posted something particularly comment-worthy myself. I was wasting time in little five-minute increments throughout the day as I logged on to check who was doing what at any hour of the day. I realized, slowly, that, for me, Facebook had become a negative.
It all culminated in a great discussion at our women’s Bible study a couple weeks ago. We were discussing 1 Timothy 2:1-2, where Paul instructs Timothy to pray that so that he can lead a “tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.” We talked about, practically, what this is and isn’t. And, for me, a tranquil and quiet life definitely isn’t Facebook.
A few of us committed to each other at our women’s retreat last weekend to deactivate our accounts, and so we did. I came home and told Eric about it and he just beamed. He is a man of few words (which I love about him), so when he comments on a big decision or situation, I make sure to listen, because his words are always carefully chosen and brimming with wisdom. His comment on deactivating Facebook? “It is either completely negative or some combination of negative and neutral. And why would you want to use your time on something that’s neutral?” Sold! :)
I’m not condemning Facebook, because I know many, many people who use it in a much more positive fashion that I used it. But for now, for me (and a group of close friends), I’m done with Facebook. And I’ve already noticed such positive changes because of it!
The one thing that saddens me about deactivating my account is that some of the people I care about and don’t get to see very often will miss seeing pictures of Eli. And I totally respect that. Which is why I’m going to try and make more of an effort to keep up with this blog. I’ll probably lean more heavily on the pictures and less heavily on words, but I really want to let those of you who care to still be able to see and keep up with our boy, who is the reason I started this blog in the first place! :)
So, anyway, after this supremely long and probably slightly annoying post, I’ll conclude. Key points? No more Facebook, more frequent blogging, Love you all and want to stay in touch. So check back reasonably often, and I’ll try to keep you updated with what’s going on in our world.
The end!
