Perspective

Facebook is like a big party. Most posts are happy. Sometimes people post that they are sick. I posted a while ago wondering why “Why are Midnight to 3 AM the child puking hours? I understand about adults, who come back from bars, but children who seemed fine when they went to sleep? Well, Cole seems fine now but it is going to be a lazy day just to make sure”.

Sometimes someone gets fed up. That happened to a friend of mine. She posted about medical costs when uninsured and dealing with severe illness for a family member.

Later that day I met someone who seemed to have it all together. She is someone who I trust. That day she was stressed. The weekend before her house had been robbed and she and her husband were trying to deal with the aftermath. Then they found out that the housing insurance they thought they were paying for was not going to cover this, because they were not really paying housing insurance. Their mortgage was in the process of being sold (something they had nothing to do with) and they got screwed.

I write this to ask that people try to not immediately be snarky to others. I know it is difficult, I do it all the time. Sarcasm is my defense against an unkind world. These incidents reminded me that we cannot at all times “have it together”. We all have stress.

It is nice to go on Facebook and see jokes and pictures of our friends. It relieves our stress and helps us feel connected even if we don't see our friends for years. It is nice to just talk to people about the weather and all the good things going on in life.

There are times when this social media (and just being social) can help us to understand our friends in a way that we may not have because when they vent, we see that we are all human and sometimes our problems can seem daunting. This venting can create strife but I hope just like with my friends, it can help us to gain perspective on our own problems and be more sympathetic to others.

I posted something on Facebook later that day after hearing these problems of others. “Perspective day for me. Have heard two stories within two hours that made me say, "I will pray for you". Be nice to people, you do not know what they may be dealing with.”