I just got another Facebook notification of “so-so has answered a question about you, click here to find out the answer.” I’m in a really snarky tired mood so I’ve allowed this to irrationally irk me . One of the questions said that this individual has answered questions about your life story. Are you kidding me? My fifteen year old boyfriend can tell you my life story? Now this is no slam against this Facebook friend. He happens to be a REALLY nice person. But I’ve seen him once or twice in the last 20 years and we do send short messages on Facebook but that the limit of our interaction. Where does Facebook get off? Yes, I may be looking for a fight and most of my online buddies are not signed in so I have no where to rant.
I love social media. I love making connections with people around the world with free tools. I have had some pretty amazing conversations that started on Twitter. But most of those interactions are limited to 140 characters. We almost have to draw a lot of conclusions that may or may not be based on accurate assumptions about people we will very likely never meet in person.
So if Facebook is so smart and can write my life story I started thinking about an exercise I went through last week at a conference. Ernest Hemingway was challenged to write the shortest stories using only 6 words. He wrote
For Sale: Baby Shoes, Never Worn
I wondered what 6 words could encapsulate my life story, this coming from a woman who fights against being put in any type of box for very long.
Powerful woman fighting for the least
Girl crazy in love with God
Tempermental wench prone to spontaneous outbursts
Creative sort trapped inside a pragmatist
Wife to one Mother to three
Abused child not defined by past
Beloved Child redeemed by God’s grace
Exceptional woman not held to Earth
Walks in love not on eggshells
No box can hold this one
Habitual sinner held in God’s arms
So stick it Facebook. Don’t try to tell my life story. I know who I am and where I am going.
The Rabid Mime 