Why Bother with a High School Reunion when you have Facebook and Myspace?

I remember watching T.V. shows and movies about high school reunions in the late 80's/early 90's, wondering whether I'd ever attend my own 10-year reunion some day.

Curiosity would be my pure motive for attending a get-together of this nature. Who will show up with the hot wife/husband? Who will gain/lose 100 pounds? Who will surprise us all with their new nose/breasts/face/body/what-have-you?

After convincing myself that satisfying my curiosity would be reason enough for me to show up to my high school reunion with a fake smile and a rehearsed narrative of what I've accomplished the last ten years...then came along sites like MySpace and Facebook!!! I created my MySpace profile back in 2006 and connected with some former classmates. MySpace was only the beginning...

When I moved to New York in 2007, the big thing was Facebook! EVERYONE in New York had a Facebook profile, it was ridiculous (of course I immediately copied and pasted my MySpace info into my Facebook account). When I met people out at bars, clubs, networking events, seminars and parties, we didn't exchange phone numbers, instead we'd tell each other how they could find us on Facebook. "I'm friends with so-and-so" or "my last name is Smith" or "I'm tagged in Sarah's New Year's Eve Album."

As many folks already know, Facebook was founded by Harvard grads and began as an exclusive social networking site for students (particularly in the east coast). It became such a HUGE hit that it was open to EVERYONE with an email address (students AND non-students). It eventually found its way over to the west coast --- slowly but surely. Most of my friends and classmates have made the conversion over to Facebook and completely ditched MySpace.

Thanks to these social networking sites, we area able to browse (and for some people, stalk) other people's profiles to get a snapshot of their lives --- at least of what they are willing to share.

So is it really worth it to attend your high school reunion anymore? MySpace and Facebook provide instant gratification! You no longer have to dread creating small talk with someone whose bloody name you can't even remember. What a relief!


Although I decided not to attend my 10-year high school reunion, I was able to check out photos posted on Facebook from classmates' photo albums (see above)! Hehe....thanks for posting :)

Accepting Uncertainty

My future sister-in-law recommended an extremely moving book to me called Forever Lily by Beth Nonte Russell. This personal memoir is about an unexpected mother's journey to adoption in China. Filled with emotional turmoil and unique circumstances, the author writes about topics that we can all relate to from our own journeys in life.

Although I am not a mother or have any plans to adopt a child, the memoir included philosophical annotations and thought-provoking questions regarding acceptance, faith, uncertainty and rejection, which are things everyone can relate to. Readers can identify with Russell's emotional struggles and extraordinary situations

Excerpt from Forever Lily:

Ambiguity is one of the most difficult things to tolerate, and the intolerance leads to poor choices. Not knowing, not knowing how something will turn out, leads to impatience for an outcome. The impatience then results in one of two actions: either a resolution is forced, or there is a move to retreat, to give up. Either way, the result cannot be optimal, for in every situation, a process is working, an intricate, complex process, which has as its goal the highest outcome, the good of the whole, which we cannot easily see or grasp. The ability to allow the process to work can be called faith, and this faith is not a belief, this faith is not passive. The self-descipline needed to overcome the anxiety of ambiguity takes enormous effort to sustain.

The truth is that every single moment of every single life is uncertain. We go to great lengths to deny this, so much do we crave the illusion of security. True power lies in accepting the fact that everything is uncertain in every moment; it is the truth, and it is where our freedom lies. A small shift in thinking, a slight willingness to admit the possibility, and one can see that if everything is uncertain, then anything is possible.

I will remember this throughout all my personal journeys in life --- whether I'm coping with love, family, work or all the little speed bumps life has to offer. Thanks for sharing this book with me Rosario!

A Star is Born!!!

This adorable little Indonesian/Malaysian girl sings her heart out. You've got to watch her facial expressions and hand gestures...melts my heart every time!