Somewhere on one of my blogs is an entry about exclusivity. Carl Sandburg thought "exclusive" to be the ugliest word in the English language. After a visit to Carl Sandburg's birthplace, this was the moment I remembered, this quote.
I have been accused of having an exclusive club on Facebook, and I have been accused of not wanting to listen to opposing opinions of others. That is not the first time I have been criticized for this on Facebook. I know the specific traits I do not like in a Facebook "friend" and I now unfriend quickly without much regret.
I want to say that Facebook is not a club. And I want to say that I have never turned down a "friend" request. But somehow those justifications do not seem strong enough to counter the Carl Sandburg attack.
I have decided that I am definitely correct in limiting harmful influences from my life. There is only so much stress I want to expose myself to. And I have a very public job.
Facebook was wonderful tonight. I have such a great group of "friends." It really made me feel good to see the community of like minded folks interrelate and express themselves, if only for a short while. Everything is so interconnected that I cannot really think that my slightly exclusive page makes a dime's worth of difference in this dynamic atmosphere. I am but a tiny aspect of a greater whole. I might influence a small amount, which is all I do in real life.
When I was younger I thought I could change the world. I now see how wide the world actually is. Yet I also at times have marveled at my ability to affect things in some small way by joining others in action or thought. I am relatively new to Facebook and I see such potential in social media. I started less than a year ago to think that world changing events could result from the community resulting from the Internet and I have found nothing better than Facebook that represents this open social movement.
And further, I enjoy my life so much more surrounded by kindred spirits. Carl, when I think the accusations of exclusivity are truly warranted, I promise to try harder. But time and age are large parts of the reason I have less of an ability to withstand the stress of seemingly mindless disagreement. I have a role to play and it is a different role than it was in my younger years. Carl, I guess I just want to make a distinction between being exclusive and being reclusive, which I know you can relate to.
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