All too frequently I see postings about people losing their loved ones. It is a sad reality of life that the older we become the more frequently we will recognize these people. Being on social media has certainly increased those numbers as well. I wonder how many have found out that sad news through that medium. It always saddens me when I see those postings so filled with sorrow. I certainly do not want to hit the " like " button. If I know the person in any fashion whatsoever I will try to leave a few words of consolation. But it really isn't a time for banter.
In another way I can see where this social media platform may provide some consolation. More than a simple obituary can be posted. Recently I had the unfortunate necessity of checking on the cost of an obituary and believe me it isn't cheap. What is more, I wonder how many would actually see that written tribute to my loved one. Using facebook or any number of platform I could post a tribute fit for a king ! That can be a comfort. It is rather ironic that we in this digital age would have a " timeline. " How starkly that term hits when we hear of the passing of our friends. That is especially so when the only contact you have had with that person is through that venue. Their timeline has ended and is being archived somewhere. Nothing on this internet ever really goes away. In a very strange way, immortality has been achieved.
All these thoughts went through my mind yesterday as I read a post. Another thought came creeping in, my Dad has been gone for twenty five years now. Twenty five years ! It doesn't seem possible yet the calendar does not lie. His timeline ended on the twentieth of February in 1990. That was before there were timelines on social media. The internet itself is said to have been invented in January of 1990. Al Gore didn't do it though. My dad was using what was a simple computer before his passing. It used cassette tapes and could perform some filing functions. Oh how he would have loved Google ! All that information at his fingertips would have been an inspiration to him. I was thinking about all of that and how I received the news of his passing. I had walked down to the corner phone booth and called Mom. It was on that land line telephone, standing on a street corner that Mom told me. The " booth " is still there but there is no phone inside. Twenty five years has made quite a difference.
Over the last twenty five years I have posted many pictures and written many stories about my Dad. It is a sort of continual obituary. A lasting tribute to him. I have long said that no one is gone as long as we mention their name. They are not gone, they just aren't here. It does get easier to dredge up those old memories as time goes by. There is another byproduct of keeping those memories fresh, they don't " stink. " So, I talk about my Dad and others that I have lost often.
Something I have not considered is what happens with my facebook account after I am gone ? I mean, I know that my wife or someone else can take it down. That is a term I dislike," taking down " my profile page and account. Sounds like you are killing me ! I guess, in a way, you would be. That cyber presence would indeed be gone. I haven't heard of it yet but perhaps there will one day be a cyber haunting ! Mystery posts appearing on your timeline. Oh my, Stephen King could have a ball with that notion.
The thing with reading the postings on your timeline is that you never have any idea of what will appear. At least in the newspaper you could choose a section. Most started with the headlines, then perhaps the comic strips. The letters to the editor section always fascinated me. The Obituaries were always the last thing I wanted to read. But just like a car crash, you just had to look. On facebook this " accident " is liable to appear at any second ! There are times when I am not prepared for that. It is true even when I do not know the person being eulogized ! A slap back to reality. This facebook and timeline stuff is a " wild west " alright. Almost lawless and brutal in its' reality. You had best tighten the cinch, make sure the bit is in tight and hold on. You never know where the trail will lead.
In another way I can see where this social media platform may provide some consolation. More than a simple obituary can be posted. Recently I had the unfortunate necessity of checking on the cost of an obituary and believe me it isn't cheap. What is more, I wonder how many would actually see that written tribute to my loved one. Using facebook or any number of platform I could post a tribute fit for a king ! That can be a comfort. It is rather ironic that we in this digital age would have a " timeline. " How starkly that term hits when we hear of the passing of our friends. That is especially so when the only contact you have had with that person is through that venue. Their timeline has ended and is being archived somewhere. Nothing on this internet ever really goes away. In a very strange way, immortality has been achieved.
All these thoughts went through my mind yesterday as I read a post. Another thought came creeping in, my Dad has been gone for twenty five years now. Twenty five years ! It doesn't seem possible yet the calendar does not lie. His timeline ended on the twentieth of February in 1990. That was before there were timelines on social media. The internet itself is said to have been invented in January of 1990. Al Gore didn't do it though. My dad was using what was a simple computer before his passing. It used cassette tapes and could perform some filing functions. Oh how he would have loved Google ! All that information at his fingertips would have been an inspiration to him. I was thinking about all of that and how I received the news of his passing. I had walked down to the corner phone booth and called Mom. It was on that land line telephone, standing on a street corner that Mom told me. The " booth " is still there but there is no phone inside. Twenty five years has made quite a difference.
Over the last twenty five years I have posted many pictures and written many stories about my Dad. It is a sort of continual obituary. A lasting tribute to him. I have long said that no one is gone as long as we mention their name. They are not gone, they just aren't here. It does get easier to dredge up those old memories as time goes by. There is another byproduct of keeping those memories fresh, they don't " stink. " So, I talk about my Dad and others that I have lost often.
Something I have not considered is what happens with my facebook account after I am gone ? I mean, I know that my wife or someone else can take it down. That is a term I dislike," taking down " my profile page and account. Sounds like you are killing me ! I guess, in a way, you would be. That cyber presence would indeed be gone. I haven't heard of it yet but perhaps there will one day be a cyber haunting ! Mystery posts appearing on your timeline. Oh my, Stephen King could have a ball with that notion.
The thing with reading the postings on your timeline is that you never have any idea of what will appear. At least in the newspaper you could choose a section. Most started with the headlines, then perhaps the comic strips. The letters to the editor section always fascinated me. The Obituaries were always the last thing I wanted to read. But just like a car crash, you just had to look. On facebook this " accident " is liable to appear at any second ! There are times when I am not prepared for that. It is true even when I do not know the person being eulogized ! A slap back to reality. This facebook and timeline stuff is a " wild west " alright. Almost lawless and brutal in its' reality. You had best tighten the cinch, make sure the bit is in tight and hold on. You never know where the trail will lead.
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