Not the 1950s. I mean living in my 50s. This weekend has been one of reflection. I haven’t been able to get my mind off of where my life is, and how my blog– how social media fits in the picture. Let me explain:
I’m 50 years old now. That’s not particularly noteworthy. I also write a blog. Ditto. But something rather profound struck me this weekend. For the first time,there are a LOT of PWDs who are reaching their 40s, 50s, and 60s without a lot of major diabetes-related problems, and with a lot of access to social media. There are still people with a lot of D-related issues out there. But despite the fact that there are continuing things to worry about, we are living longer, better, more productive lives.
On top of that, the Internet has now grown beyond just listservs, bulletin boards, and AOL mail to include blogging (of course), Twitter, Flickr, Pinterest, Facebook, and more. What does that mean? More than you might think.
For one thing, it means that we get to share our story with the rest of the world. It’s true that the Internet is mostly the playground of those in their teens, twenties, and even thirties. Out of the thousands of diabetes blogs out there, the overwhelming majority are written by PWDs in this group.
But if you’re in your teens, 20s, or 30s… have you thought about the fact that the people in my age group are telling the story you’ll be living in 10, 20, 30, or 40 years? Yeah, it just hit me this weekend.
I hope that we’re telling our story well. And I hope that we’re giving enough information about living at this age, with this condition. Whether we’re doing great or struggling, I hope we’re telling the truth. While I know it doesn’t seem like we’re on the same page when it comes to social media (or is it just me?– it’s possible), I hope you’re still reading about us, and thinking about what it means for your life. And I hope that eventually, we’re motivating you to do what you need to do to make your life better when you reach our age.
I also hope, personally, that if I say something I shouldn’t… if I can improve in some way, if I need to look at something from another point of view… I hope you tell me. I work an IT job Monday through Friday, but I’m still a relative newbie when it comes to social media. I have a lot to learn. Any help you can give me would be appreciated more than you know.
So there’s an interesting dynamic at work here. I don’t really know where things are headed yet. There’s a lot more to be defined in the coming years as we all grow older. I’m guessing I’ll be talking about this again.
Know what? I’m looking forward to it. I may not be the ultimate social media expert, but I know I have something important to say. And I’m looking forward to saying it. Keep reading. Look in on my world from time to time, won’t you?
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