A Funny Thing Happened As I Left Facebook

Today is my last "Facebook" Day.  Although I haven't set a specific time for when I will leave Facebook on Sunday, it would only seem authentic to me if I spent most of the day without it.  One last check for the remaining comments and posts, and then--deactivate.  Plus, I'm sort of up against a deadline with Rosh Hashana starting Sunday night. 

I have been extremely deliberate in preparing for my departure from the Facebook World.  I brainstormed the reasons why I use Facebook (networking, news, nostalgia, keeping in touch with friends, remembering birthdays), and I brainstormed other methods of fulfilling those same needs.  I went through each and every Facebook friend and wrote down the birthdays of the ones who really matter in my planner and my Google calendar.  I even set reminders on my phone so I wouldn't forget them on their special day.  I made sure to notify the people and groups who would miss my presence the most.  I figured that any friend worth taking with me as I move on to become a new, mindful, intentional person, already had my contact information, or that I already had theirs. 

But a funny thing happened that I was not prepared for.  A number of friends, upon seeing my Facebook break up post, messaged me to give me their phone numbers.  "Just in case" they said.  Or, "so we can actually get that coffee."  "Let's keep in touch."  I did not have any of these friends' numbers in my phone already, and frankly, I was surprised and flattered by who was reaching out.  It was an unexpected side effect of leaving, and it definitely made me feel valued.  I was never really worried about whether anyone would notice my absence or miss me, but I now know that there are definitely some people who would.  It does make me wonder, though, if we were serious about getting that coffee, why I didn't have their numbers to begin with... but each message definitely put a smile on my face.

The last thing, which I have not figured out what to do about, is the fact that all of my pictures from the past nine years are on Facebook.  I don't even think I still have them saved on my computers, considering the number of computers I have gone through in that amount of time.  I love looking through old pictures, so I think this will be what is hardest for me.