Monday, July 4, 2011

MEDIA MONDAY & HAPPY 4TH OF JULY




































FEEL FREE TO BORROW THIS IMAGE. A FRIEND OF  MINE LET ME BORROW IT FROM HER PAGE. I LIKE HOW IT  REFLECTS  OUR COUNTRY AND VINTAGE STYLE ALL AT THE SAME TIME :)

Hi everyone,
To all of my fellow Americans at home and abroad, Happy 4th of July :) :) I hope you are all having a super fun day today :) :)  For the rest of you, I'm wishing you a great day as well, whatever you are doing :) :)

There's a website/blog that I have been following for awhile on Facebook and here called "Women Living Well".   It's a really interesting place to visit. It is primarily geared towards married women. I'm am definitely NOT married...but I still enjoy reading the things on this page. There are things here that are still applicable to even us single ladies.

In any case, there's an 8-week series that they'll be doing called "Media Mondays". Click here to visit the post from yesterday.  It really caught my attention in a big way.  There's also a blog button for their series at the top of the right sidebar here.  It is something that has been on my heart for awhile now.

I really do love modern technology. It has opened up things to us, that we might not otherwise have had access to. It has allowed me to forge new friendships with lovely people all over the world. I've learned new things, too. Blogging...I LOVE blogging...for sure. That's where I feel most comfortable right now.

However, lately, I've been really feeling something pressing on my heart.  For me personally it's Facebook. For others, it will be something different.  In any case, I was really feeling sad and do still feel sad a bit, about how much media has intruded into our lives. How do we use it to reach out, while not having it affect our literal day to day interactions with the people arounds us - at work, at home, at church. 

I'm just speaking for myself here.  Here was a response I'd written to my post on Facebook. It's "short"...well, short for me..you know how much I LOVE to talk...even on the computer:


‎"Women Living Well" is more geared towards married ladies..BUT I think there's a lot of application for us single gals, too :) :) I've been thinking a LOT about the role media plays in our lives. There's a lot of good that comes with it.... My only real concern is that when it becomes more important than actual human interaction, that's when it's gone too far. I think it's affecting peoples abilities to relate to other people. Oh, in the Christian church especially, I think it's so much easier for people to do a check-in on Facebook, than invest any of their time in someone else. That is something I'm going to try and avoid, because people are important. So I'm praying about that. Those are just some of my initial thoughts. I'm going to add this to my blog series tonight. In any case, thanks for leaving your comments ;) :) I really enjoyed reading what you have to write :) :) :)
 
So I've been praying about that.  People check in on Facebook or wherever, instead of actually calling up the person. Or we get irritated because someone needed us, while we were sitting in front of the screen. For me personally, it's come to the point, where I really need to take an active step. I just don't know what yet. Closing down my Facebook account completely is not the solution. It's great, because it lets me keep in contact with people  who live far away. However, with people who live here locally, we never call each other. We never spend time together during the week. It's easier to "like" a comment or "leave" a comment, because it doesn't force us to climb out of our comfort zones. It lets us be "social" while keeping our rears in our seats at home.   There's something wrong with that..I think...
 
In any case, those are just thoughts. I'm really looking forward to the topics during this series. I think a good portion of you are married, so this series would be especially applicable to you. If you're single, like me, I still think there's benefit for us, too. Start thinking about how we can make applications in our lives as women - married or single..and how media affects our everyday interactions with people.  I'd love to hear from all of you. I think there's something we can all learn from each other...and encourage each other, too :) :)
 
Okay, that was a bit of a more serious topic, but it's so pressing on my heart, I  just can't hold it in any longer. NO worries, I'll still have cool crafty stuff and vintage antique finds :) :) Not talking about that would be like asking the sun to stop shining. It just isn't gonna happen :) :)
 
That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs from Oregon, Heather :)

10 comments:

Kim B said...

I do agree that there is less formal socializing going on. There needs to be a sense of community and family you can share with in person or even on the phone. I have found that since I was laid off in 2007 I have become very unsocial (facebook included) I miss the times of having close friends, lunches and chats. Hope you have a wonderful day. I do love the internet so I can chat with people far away (like you). Hugs, Kim

Annesphamily said...

Kim B is right. People want to spend too much time on these sites which can be time consuming when we could be getting together and spend more quality time with each other. I like visiting friends far away but I do have a close circle of girlfriends and we meet for breakfast. I like the personal experience. My oldest daughter Noelle has a monthly lunch on the first Wedesday of each month. The ladies she once worked with at Woolworths, in their restaurant , are all quite a bit older than her but she loves the time they spend together and enjoys the visits. Thanks for sharing today and hope the 4th is wonderful for you. It is 97 here and I am staying inside where it is cool! Hugs Anne

Coralie Cederna Johnson said...

Have a wonderful day, Heather!
Hugs,
Coralie

Angie Berry ~ Berry Homespun Primitives said...

So very true Heather! I always enjoyed hanging out on the front porch when I was growing up and miss it so much. We still do that here where we live now, only we are out in the country and only have 2 neighbors by us so it's not so much porch time like it was back then. But I agree with everything you just said, so very true!

Karen and Gerard said...

That is an unusual picture--very good! We had a wonderful holiday weekend with beautiful weather. Here's a link to our post about it:
http://ourstack.blogspot.com/2011/07/happy-fourth-of-july.html

Jill said...

I agree Heather, we need to take some time to really sit down and get to know our friends and family again...try to cut down on tech time. Hope you have a great week.

Blessings,
Jill

Karna said...

Du er kjempe flink i norsk...blir mektig imponert jeg!

Veldig kjekt med løse trekk på møblene, spesielt når en har hund slik som jeg...trenger noen runder i vaskemaskinen etter en stund kan jeg love deg....

Ha en fin dag, her skinner sola, og det ser ut som at sommeren endelig er kommet til Vestlandet...

Camille said...

Interesting thoughts Heather...I agree. We must be vigilant to keep our *online* life in check...and develop the *face to face* relationships that God has placed in our lives. HE will enable us to be balanced in all of these things as we look to HIM for wisdom in it all. (James 1:5)

Many blessings to you!
Camille

Leaon Mary said...

Hey Heather!
I totally get what you're sayin here. I kinda wonder if that's why at times I get quiet on the computer .... -- like I need more real life going on around me that I can talk to, and touch and hear!??? You've given me alot to think about.

I'm still thankful for social media though because without it... well; I might have missed meeting many new friends. For that I'm very grateful.

Love the time I get to spend with you here at the Blogorama! Thanks for sharing your heart. You are a real blessing. Holykisses xoxo

The Silver Age Sara said...

Heather, I've been thinking about this for a while. Each day I tell myself I won't spend much time at the computer and yet each day I get sucked into my online world/life which is definitely interesting and rewarding but it's not real in the sense of tangible reality around me. I've decided to take a major blog break. That will free up lots of time. It's difficult to read, to write, to do projects, pray, see friends, etc. when you are attached to the computer screen and that's where I've been. Great discussion topic.