The FOMO is Strong with this One: Faith, Art, and Finding Home #5
Well, hello there! Once again proving the struggle is real with writing monthly, behold, a belated letter. If you're looking to adopt some poetry this summer, you'll find a special book sale link at the bottom of this letter, along with the usual links! But first, some notes on an ongoing social (media) experiment...
A little over a month ago, I deleted the Facebook app from my phone.
It wasn't a dramatic statement, a premeditated experiment, or a protest against the tyranny of the social feed. And it's not an attempt to phase the Big Book of Faces from my life. For one thing, when you manage social media for a company, having a Facebook account is kind of a job requirement. For another, I couldn't bear the thought of randomly severing contact with dear, scattered family and friends. But one Monday morning, when I caught myself scrolling bleary-eyed through the feed before my feet hit the floor, feeling the tug of low-level anxiety that happens when I fall into the hole for too long, I started to wonder... what if?
I got up, ate breakfast, thought some more, and even hesitated at the "Are you sure?" pop up before wiping that familiar blue icon from my phone. In a couple of taps, I got a good chunk of phone storage and a tiny shred of sanity back.
My love for social media began when I discovered blogging and message boards in 2002. This was a time of exploring random interests and meeting people who shared them, the "What? You too?" moments of community with far flung souls whose real names I didn't know. I hid behind avatars and a rotation of terrible screen names, and poured my guts out into friends-only LiveJournal posts. The only "IRL" friend who shared this experience was my sister, and we swapped sketches and learned Photoshop with a ragtag bunch of artists from the safety of our home.
I thought then that the hiding had to do with physical safety (remember when we were all scared of MySpace creeps?) Now I wonder if it had more to do with freedom. Under the cover of anonymity, you can open your wildness and creativity and wonder to the world, free from worry about what others will think. It was awesome.
Fast forward to 2016. Everyone is plugged in. Some researchers talk about "context collapse," this thing where all our circles and subgroups are merged into one giant social media party. On Facebook, an update goes to family and friends, current and former co-workers, fellow industry professionals, and yes, a few of those Internet friends I met back in 2002. Suddenly, everything feels open and exposed.
The result of the collapse? Instead of sharing our lives, we talk about the news. Instead of discussing enthusiasms, we pass thinkpieces around and argue over politics. When collective grief and fear and rage gets to be too much, here's another video of puppies or an inspirational quote to make things tolerable.
And somehow, there's something wildly addictive about a mindless scroll through the feed. Ever heard of FOMO? Fear of Missing Out? Yeah, I've got that bad.
I have the Internet in my pocket. One tap of the app and I'm in, and the deeper you swim into the feed, the harder it is to surface. And always the quiet anxiety -- wanting to speak but scared to, frustrated with all the voices.
Sometimes, you need to step out of the noise and remember what the life in front of you looks like.
I don't have an epic success story, but I think I'm becoming more okay with missing out. Not having app notifications pinging all day lessens the desire to compulsively check in. When I do explore Facebook, it's sitting down at my computer. The voices I want to hear the most are waiting at the top of my feed. I can comment on a few discussions, like a few pictures, then I'm off to other things.
But the best part? Social media starts feeling like what it used to be... a joyful, human catching up experience.
And isn't that why we're here in the first place?
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ELSEWHERE
One thing that has made me less inclined to hangout on the Facebooks: The shiny new Rabbit Room Forums! The whole site got a facelift, which is awesome enough. But if you love Story, Music, Art, and Community, you need to be here. I feel like it's 2002 hanging with my Internet nerd friends again.
Speaking of The Rabbit Room... while you check out the new design, be sure to read my last two pieces there! A review of Jason Gray's delightful new record Where the Light Gets In and some thoughts on David Dark's new book Life's Too Short to Pretend You're Not Religious.
Silence the Stones has come and gone. Chris and I had a wonderful time sharing our poetry with the good people of Trinity Church in Bolton, MA. Since I couldn't teleport you all to Massachusetts for the night, I made a point to record my reading... you can listen to it here! And speaking of....
So here's the deal... we ordered a bunch of new books for Silence the Stones. I don't need all these extra books hanging around my house, so here's a special sale just for you! All our available books are $10 each, 2 for $15, or 3 for $20... shipping's on us! We'll happily sign them too, if you'd like. :) Quantities are super limited!
Here's the super secret Square store link. (Okay, it doesn't have to be secret. But it's not on my website or anything yet.) We'll keep this going all summer or until I run out of books... whatever happens first. Feel free to forward this along... thanks for supporting our little indie poet family! <3
If you have any questions about the sale or online store, thoughts on unplugging, or just want to say hello, feel free to reply to this email. Have a happy 4th of July!
~Jen