A former colleague of mine recently passed away, she was a wonderful girl, with an infectious sense of humor, a heart of gold, and a passion for all things leading to fabulous journeys. She’d been ill for quite some time, and while her death didn’t come as a complete shock, the pain was just as hurtful. As I thought back on all of her accomplishments within the past year, I smiled. She’d finally earned her BA in Business Administration, a feat that she’d wrestled with for a long time. She’d created a pretty lucrative handmade soap business with her sister, of which I was her biggest customer. She’d entered a local beauty pageant a few months ago came in second place. She was my colleague, my friend and I miss her.
It was right about the time that her brother posted information for her funeral services, that I saw then the condolences, the memories, the hundreds of pictures. They came flooding in like a river at last, count, she; had eighty- six post-mortem messages from friends and family members. It was all so surreal. Having been in the same circle for some time, we’d acquired many of the same friends. It was interesting to see their posts, their declarations… And that’s when it started.
Perhaps it’s just me. Maybe I’m reading way too much into things. Insomnia mixed with Aunty Flo has, in the past, proven to be a wicked mix. But this is me. I post when my cousin has a new spot in a commercial. I share when my co-worker starts selling life insurance. I tag my sister when she debuts her new catering business. But again, perhaps that’s just me. I enjoy spreading the good news about the people I care about; I’m the cheerleader with the pom-poms sharing your page as though it’s mine. I’m right there, showcasing your accomplishments because you and your life are amazing to me. But again, now remember this is just me.
My friend, her handmade soap business, never generated the buzz that it should have early on. It’s not that her product wasn’t lovely. On the contrary, it’s excellent! However, she made the mistake of sharing this new venture with those on her ‘personal’ page. You know, the one with her friends and her family and they, shared it with no one. These same folks who were so quick to enter paragraphs about how much she meant to them, had never once cheered her on as she accepted her crown covered in rhinestone.
These same friends and family members who shamelessly repost and like videos of kids fighting in school, and weirdos shopping in Walmart, had never even commented on her receiving her BA. It all makes me wonder. Why does bad news travel so much more quickly than good news? Someone gets a promotion at work, no one bats an eye, but let that same person get fired at eight o’clock in the morning, and the whole department knows by noon. Someone purchases their first house, and ten of their seven hundred friends hits the like button, but let the same person get evicted, and people can’t circulate their GoFundMe page fast enough.
@#$! Stop clogging my feed with negative and ridiculously sad posts. Instead, let’s share posts that uplift and inspire one another! Don’t share flowers and good intentions with the dead, share them with the living.
