Are you a reader or maybe a creeper?
- Michelle Wood: SWCD
- March 5, 2018
- 1524
I realized after they asked me the question that they had only wanted to engage in passing chitchat and move along, that they only wanted to exclaim about a small thing that had piqued their interest but not get into conversation. I noticed this after I was two minutes into lengthy and animated detail on what they had asked about. Their eyes were glazed, and they were fidgety. I cut off my words and let them move on.
There are people that are passersby to your life and those that are engaged. There are those that take a slice of you and go with it, interested and entertained. I know who these people are in person and online. I have them on Facebook and Twitter and not really on IG. There are those that engage and talk, and after so many years of having them in my daily life, they feel like a part of my family.
Then there are the ones who skim me, the creepers and disdainers of my words, the ones who read my tweets and posts only to disagree, and the ones who agree or simply enjoy having conversation on what I’m feeling, whether in agreement or not.
I find that I don’t follow people just to disagree with them. I’m not sure what the point of that would be. I have many thoughts, sometimes scattered and sometimes put together. I share what I like and what I disagree vehemently with and know that I gather my thoughts carefully before sharing anything. I do my homework and research information and sites I share from, trying hard not to let my emotions lead me yet knowing sometimes they must.
Where I post is a mini puzzle that has finally come together. I have a blog I used to share more on than I do now, but I find that torn pieces of thought, sent out randomly throughout my day, scratch the insatiable itch to share my feelings. I do it with or without replies and comments, kind of like writing a diary of random interactive emotion.
I will admit that a social media relationship can make real-life interactions awkward. After all we come to know people in ways we never have before, save for a face-to-face relationship. We’re real and honest. But it shouldn’t be awkward. We put our thoughts out into the galaxy, or also in my case with this column, and friendships form and fans are found.
I received a letter from one of my readers by the name of Fannie. She wrote me the nicest handwritten letter, letting me know she can’t wait for the book to come out that I’ve written on my husband. (I’m working hard on finding a publisher, Fannie, and you’ll find out for sure when it’s on the market ready for purchase. Thanks for reading me!)
What struck me about her letter, though, was her last sentence that went like this, “As you can see, I’m not a writer, but I am a reader.” I like this statement.
It used to be that readers were those who consumed books. In today’s age there are so many ways to be a reader and listener of words: newspapers, podcasts, online articles, audible books, tweets, snaps and more. The consumption of words and the relationships formed with that medium and those who write them can be a great resource.
I believe that Fannie is a reader of words that interest her, a consumer of stories that spark her interest. When I write something, I think about how it will sound to my readers and maintain my creativity while catering somewhat to what I know they’ll like. Really, I just write what’s on my heart, what’s happening in my life and what I can do with the world that spins crazily around us. It’s the same way online, although different platforms have become different worlds we go around in. I’m freer on some than others, to maintain a modicum of self-preservation.
It’s unfortunate we rein ourselves in to keep peace, but that’s the way of it at times. I value the places I can be myself and the friends I have in those places. Everyone needs a place to vent and have good friends that will let you do it.