No...not the grateful dead (though I see the irony in those 2 words side by side), no peeps....looks like Ricky is right....blogs are dead it seems....my how things fly into and out of radar these days....too bad....it goes the way of the newspaper....the way of the diary or the handwritten journal....the handwritten letter that you looked forward to from your grandma or friend....yes, some deaths are slow and lengthy, but apparently not the blog....it was like a massive heart attack....taken over by the twitbookningplurk social networking thingy....and yet IS it?!! IS it really SOCIAL? Hmmm..... lets see...SOCIAL - "marked by friendly companionship with others; "a social cup of coffee"...."living together or enjoying life in communities or organized groups; "...."Inclined to seek out or enjoy the company of others; sociable."... these are only a few of the online (yes, online!) definitions....so.....see for yourself if you think these "social networks" seem indeed "social". I think they, like blogs, just make it easier NOT to be "social"....yes, they get you in contact with people you would not otherwise be in contact with, but do you truly socialize? Do you know about these friends of yours in a deeper way? Do you understand their hearts any clearer? Hard to do unless it is a slower time of face to face contact or at the least a decent phone conversation......conversation, facial expressions, body language, tears, anger, unbelief, not listening, the heart felt touch of another.....all this and more, lack in today's way of socializing....too bad.....we all miss out by going this direction.... and yet, to do or be otherwise, is not to be "up to date" with the times.....and for what.....so that we can be connected to people we don't really know or have time to really care about? So that we are connected with some tweet from someone or some entity that we get "news" from? And the thing is, is that it is "news" that we just belly ache about getting ANYWAY!!! The world is full of this madness.....so? So, step outside the tech box and into your neighbors yard.....into your friends or familes hearts....into the grocery store and the clerks day....bring some real sunshine to real people in this ever changing but real life that we supposedly "live".....me? I will keep writing here and there and everywhere....why? because I enjoy the art of it. Me? I will walk next door to talk to the old man taking care of his 93 year old mom and try to brighten his day or offer help. Me? I will cook for the friend who can't because she is sick. Me? I will look into the eyes of the people I come in contact with today and let them know there is light out here in this sometimes dark and care LESS world that seems to be so wrapped up in its own technology. Nothing wrong with it....I am using it NOW!!! But watch out.....it can take the place of truly knowing someone....of truly speaking your heart to a breathing living person....it can replace what is true and right and down your own road everyday in the EYES of the people you pass by or look away from as you send your IM/TWEET/FACEBOOKING important texts.....as I point the finger at the world at large, 4 other fingers MUST point back at myself.....yes, I see that hand...er finger.....nope, I won't stop blogging, as a matter of fact, I have 2! One for the ones who want to KNOW me and those who want to know ABOUT me. Whether they are read or not, or taken interest in or not, whether anyone freakin cares or not, is NOT the point....the point....to speak my heart....to listen to others replies, to spark thought and conversations with those I DO care about.....Take the good and leave the rest.....
"Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest."
Mark Twain (1835-1910)
