The Facebook Fast

In years of Lenten sacrifices past, I made choices that seemed obvious at the time. Growing up Catholic, we did not eat meat on Fridays. When I could begin selecting my own practices give up, there were 40 days lacking ice cream. There were 40 days lacking swearing. In an effort to appreciate silence and experience being” in the moment”, there were 40 days lacking listening to the radio during my commutes. There was even an honest attempt to go 40 days without engaging in gossip, but I worked in a field dominated by women and amongst incredibly dramatic teens (fodder for the rumor mill) so that one was an epic FAIL. This year, I struggled with seeking a “good fit” for my Lenten sacrifice. I am no slave to chocolate. I gave up cigarettes years ago and, trust me, this Mama NEEDS a drink by the end of the week. I contemplated giving up the gym, but that certainly wasn’t in the name of Christ. It wasn’t until I came across a blog post from a former college classmate that I found the answer to what I was looking for. She wrote about how she was implementing a “Facebook-Free Friday” in her routine. What a novel idea—and the sacrifice that I was seeking!

So I now I find myself in the midst of a Facebook Fast. I must be clear in the fact that this will not be 40 days straight of zero social networking. Unfortunately, with two small children in tow, I do not get enough access to the outside world to rid myself completely of this public forum. It is springtime: A season brimming with friends getting married and lots of babies being born, so I still feel quite compelled to check in every so often to smile at a giddy status and ogle at images of plump newborns. But I am maintaining a conscientious venture into avoiding the site as much as I can. Every Friday is an absolute “Facebook-Free Friday”. With regard to the remainder of the week, well that is left mainly to my own personal discretion, but I must admit that I really have been “good” (usually only responding to messages sent to me via Facebook, but accessed through my email account). This act of denial, in turn, has already served its faith-minded objective. Renouncing my urges to communicate via the Internet has not only made me aware of a cognizant, sacrificial practice, but has also forced me to reconnect with the world through far more personable actions. I have mailed out greeting cards. I have invited friends into my home. I have picked up the phone to call and chat versus sending out a quick text. And in an ironic turn of events, I have discovered that the current lack of social networking in my life has actually made me more sociable.

The inspiration for all of this came in the form of an unassuming blog post, but the Lord definitely works in mysterious ways. I sought and He answered. My response was found in the words written on a blog site entitled “Instant Gratification”. And, in a paradoxal twist of fate, that is what the Facebook Fast has actually given me: Instant gratification.