My wife recently mentioned that we get less than a third of the Holiday cards that we once received and that at least half of them are from family members. Of course, we also send out far fewer Holiday greetings than we did when we were younger. Over the years, family responsibilities, career-related duties, relocations and, unfortunately, deaths, whittle away the number of friends with whom we stay in touch. On the other hand, as we age, we come to appreciate the vital role that those friends played in our lives and we yearn to reconnect.
Partly for that reason, I decided to try the world's largest social media network earlier this year, giving myself six months to assess the benefit; I deleted my account within four months. What I found was that most of the "friends" that I accumulated on that network would be best described as "past acquaintances" from high school, college and my various work locations over the years. Most of my past good friends either don't use social media or use it primarily for family communication. Needless to say, my social experiment was less than rewarding and it has become clear that a more personalized effort is in order.
I must admit that my children's generation is much better at staying in touch with close friends. While this is partly due to their facility with social media, it also seems to reflect a commitment to remain close, including annual gatherings, reunions at weddings, etc. (to a degree that has not occurred in our generation). Hopefully, that commitment will persist as they age and they will reap the benefits of close friendships when they may need them most.
Partly for that reason, I decided to try the world's largest social media network earlier this year, giving myself six months to assess the benefit; I deleted my account within four months. What I found was that most of the "friends" that I accumulated on that network would be best described as "past acquaintances" from high school, college and my various work locations over the years. Most of my past good friends either don't use social media or use it primarily for family communication. Needless to say, my social experiment was less than rewarding and it has become clear that a more personalized effort is in order.
I must admit that my children's generation is much better at staying in touch with close friends. While this is partly due to their facility with social media, it also seems to reflect a commitment to remain close, including annual gatherings, reunions at weddings, etc. (to a degree that has not occurred in our generation). Hopefully, that commitment will persist as they age and they will reap the benefits of close friendships when they may need them most.
