fictionsmith

I check my phone every ten minutes if I am bored.  Sometimes more.  I look to see if anyone has e-mailed me or touched base with me on Facebook or Twitter.

My phone has provided me with things that make me feel better connected so I don’t feel lonely.

I am paying for a service (internet) to have connection with friends.  I don’t feel this is inherently wrong, but as with all things moderation, and even that too.

But why do I check my phone?  Validation?

Do I seek out validation online because of the law of averages?  If I have, say, 1,500 friends, someone must affirm that I’m not just speaking into the wind…

…that I’m not alone.

But, what happens when we purposefully validate those around us instead of only allowing people to find it at arm’s length, even if arm’s-length feels safer for both parties?

vcD,
-R 

(note: I’m an avid social media user, and appreciate the relationships it allows me to have that I wouldn’t have otherwise… I just want to make sure I don’t fall into the habit of not validating those around me proactively instead of using social media to feel validated myself)