"Old friends . . . old friends . . . sat on their park bench like bookends . . ."

  
Technology and I are uneasy companions.  It takes me awhile to warm up to things, and electronic devices usually prove to be fickle friends.  They don't like the vibes I give off, I guess.  I've always been socially awkward, but can a person be technologically awkward?  Because I am.

Which explains why I was fairly slow and completely uncertain about joining the Facebook revolution -- I couldn't see any use for it at all.











Until one day I considered how utterly frustrated I was by my parents' refusal to have a cell phone.

And  until I started realizing that we were missing out on pretty much everything that was going on in my husband's family. They'd send him messages and include him in all their conversations, of course, except he didn't check his Facebook page more than about twice a year.  When a baby was born (and I had no idea there was even a pregnancy), I decided it was time to change my ways and join the world of Facebook.

 

And yes, 

I can honestly say 

that I "like" it!

 
I was put off by the idea of a continual high school reunion -- not having had a desire to attend any actual reunions in my 30+ years of dining away from the high school lunchroom, I couldn't imagine why I would want to invite any of the characters that populated my youth to share the lunchroom of my adult life.

However, in perusing the lists of "people I may know", 

I have noticed some exciting trends:  

1) The boys I couldn't get a date with?  BALD!

2) The homecoming queens to whom I could never hope to measure up?  
SOMETIMES FAT, AND AT THE VERY LEAST, OLD! 

THE HOMECOMING QUEEN IS A GRANDMA!  
A GRANDMA!!!

3) And the people I truly missed and have been lucky enough to reconnect with?  Still my friends for the same reasons we chose the same lunch tables all those years ago . . .

It's simply fascinating to interact with everyone in your life at once.  From the neighbor of your distant past to the person you just met last week -- friends are indeed the bookends, and in between there have been a whole lot of volumes.

Few are the people who have read them all, but so many share important chapters of the story -- it's just like suddenly having access to all the books on my shelf at once.

There's also the ability to spy on your children.  How else would I have known, for instance, that Lindsay went water-skiing last weekend?  Yup.  Ice out on Tuesday, boat in on Sunday. That's just ridiculous and I'll have to remember to scold.  45 degree water + 45 degree air does not equal 90 degrees.  Tut tut.

Or that Hannah was up at 2 in the morning putting together treasuries on Etsy?  Invaluable information.


And although she won't use a cell phone, my mom's right in there on Facebook with everyone else -- "liking" and commenting and generally keeping her circle broad and her eyes and ears open.  I think it's absolutely wonderful.

Sometimes the world is so full of the inconceivable, 
it's hard to imagine where things will go next.

  

Whatever future wagon comes by, 
I hope I'll stay nimble enough to hop on 
for a good many years yet.

(You're never going to 

get me to tweet, however.  

Just sayin'.)