- Hospital Cheer
I think I’m finally understanding a bit about the power of ‘social networking.’ It’s not that I haven’t understood the concept which Wikipedia describes as a social structure made of individuals (or organizations) called “nodes,” which are tied (connected) by one or more specific types of interdependency… Yep! I definitely knew that (although I didn’t realize I could be called a “node”). But the part that is just coming home to me is what Wikipedia calls the many kinds of ties between the nodes.
When I wrote my blog the other day about Nyel’s knee replacement surgery, suddenly there were responses from a multitude of facebook friends. Many were people I’ve never met in real life or seen face-to-face. They are friends of friends or perhaps fans of my books – people whose names have become familiar to me but still are not folks I really know. Our current “tie” has to do with the knee replacement surgery. Who knew?
The powerful part, of course, comes from the outpouring of concern and well-wishes from all of these ‘friends.’ Their comments about their own experiences or what they have gone through with their loved ones has been amazing and touching and affirming. And it has shown me a side of social networking that far exceeds the buzzwords or even the often humdrum daily entries by so many of us. I definitely felt “connected” and even supported beyond all expectations. Hooray for Facebook and Thank You, Friends!
FB has put me back in touch with people like you, Sydney, and friends from high school. I feel like they travel around in my lap top and I can magically be in touch all the time. It’s wonderful. When I was a child Dick Tracy having a watch that he could talk into like a phone seemed like magic. The magic arrived in my lifetime. Yeah! Hope Nyle is dancing by your book launch. Saw you talking to someone at the hospital yesterday, but I was busy getting my aunt ready to go to a nursing home in Vancouver. As you well know, there is nothing on the Peninsula and no rehab available in Astoria.