Let me tell you what is great about Facebook. For a start, none of our children see it. There are many other social media platforms that have superseded it. TikTok, Twitter … whatever.
The reason I got so angry with my friend’s comments is that is exactly what Facebook is for.
I was a late adopter. However, I have fully embraced Facebook and generally err on the side of caution.
I don’t swear on the platform. I’m very positive and I love seeing other people’s “personal family s***”. When I went back to look at my Facebook, I saw my father’s 80th, Christmas celebrations and my daughter’s 20th. All with photos.
I applaud my friends' children who have done well; I congratulate people who have achieved in whatever shape or form; and if someone is celebrating an anniversary, I always say congratulations. Essentially, I’m a good person.
Ernest Hemingway is supposed to have said: “Write drunk and edit sober.” Have I made that mistake on the odd occasion? Yes. I guess the thing about Ernest was that, if he ever wrote that, he couldn’t press send in two seconds flat. That is social media for you. It’s immediate.
Now I’ll tell you why Facebook is so great.
My aunty just lost her husband. She had never been on Facebook. She now is and it has given her a new lease on life. She’s finally found her chutzpah. It’s great to see.
I have had birthdays that were awful but, without Facebook, I would have felt completely unloved. I’m not, but I have gone through rough periods. The things I have achieved in my life are affirmed. The lovely things I have done for other people are affirmed, and I get reminded that I’m not a failure.
I do have a point. You are allowed to have your own opinion.
I have people on my Facebook page who have lost a child. All they post about is grief. That is their right.
I have another friend who simply posts about politics. It’s annoying but, again, that is his right.
But, mostly, people just post about their own “personal family s***”.
The one thing I will say is, before you judge, make sure all your ducks are in a row. Make sure you’re a perfect person. Nobody is. And the other great thing about Facebook is that it gives you a choice.
Unfriend, unfollow, block or delete.
Facebook reminds you of memories. Most of them are about those closest to you. Mostly family. It might be clear that I felt really angry with my friend’s comments. I made the choice to block him and it made me feel fantastic. Nobody needs people in their lives who are simply going to make you feel awful.
As someone who is a marketer, I manage businesses’ Facebook pages. There is no place there for personal opinion. These are two completely different beasts. I know others who manage at least 10 or 20 pages. That is completely different from your personal page.
You may be aware now that this got me very hot under the collar. As a 53-year-old woman, I couldn’t care less about this person’s opinion. What it did do was make me take stock and work out who I do and don’t want in my life. Crikey, that was cathartic. I’m now officially “The Block”.
Embrace Facebook in whatever form you use it. Be a dick, be funny, be sad, just be yourself, because there is only one of you. Nobody else has the right to tell you how to be you. Don’t apologise for having your own opinion. It is your right. Your tribe will remain with you.
My tribe know that I’m constantly trying to be funny. My tribe know that I love my family. My tribe knows that I’m Nicky and they accept me for who I am. Bless them for that.
You are allowed to speak your mind. That’s what social media platforms are created for. I’m not sure what got me so angry but, at this age, I’ve had a gutsful of being told what to do.
I had crap teachers, I have been told what to do from a young age and being told that I wasn’t allowed my own opinion ground my gears.
Amen.
