Entering the house last night I was still hammering away on the mobile phone trying to tie up some loose ends with a client, it had been a hectic albeit productive Monday back from Thanksgiving. As my eyes started to burn from the long hours of staring at a computer screen and my call wrapped up with more to-do's than when it started I finally got to look around the house...something was different. A soft glow of fake candle light protruded down the creaky wooden stairs that lead to our second floor and I nearly bounded up all 12 of them to get a glimpse. It was true, our upstairs windows were now filled, each with one battery powered 'candle', signifying the start of my house slowly being decorated for Christmas.
Typically I get a bit anxious about more stuff in the house, whether it is a wreath made of Holiday Cards or Santaesque knick-nacks on the dining room hutch. Yet these candles completely threw me back in time, remembering the safety of holiday light in my bedroom as a child while snow fell slowly outside and I prayed for school to be canceled. For a few seconds, although it felt like minutes, I stood at the top of the stairs, not knowing if I was the adult who had his own family nestled in this abode or the kid who loved the anticipation and joy of December. Perhaps it was both.
All of a sudden my wife and son where beside me and I was brought back to reality. A reality where Conor was telling me about everything he did that day and clamoring for me to hug him. The rest of the night was spent talking about upcoming plans, my wife's potential trip to Hong Kong, updates on moving parts at work...isn't life grand?
Tapping into a memory is an important function of social media. The ability to provide people with a place to engage with each other and interact on various topics is critical. At the same time we should create a setting that the memory can tap into. Jeff Pulver describes it as a Social Media Living Room, I really like that connotation, but for me it's the kitchen. The kitchen has been the location of many of my best memories of social engagement...dinners with friends, cooking with Regan, listening to music and now catching up on my laptop while at home.
When talking about social media we often times discuss techniques and tactics, but we can never forget the human element...the 'social'. Facebook seems to be forgetting this facet while Ning is embracing the concept. As social beings we often strive for settings that remind us of other times or other people. Facebook was a wonderful way for me to relive memories with old mates, while also engaging with new friends in an environment that felt a bit like the hallway in high school.
That hallway was devoid of overt advertising, unless you count my cuffed Bugle Boy jeans, Champion sweatshirt and sweet mullet. It was not devoid of conflict, no social place truly is, but it was familiar, engaging, safe, and challenging. Social media should follow the same path:
In that way we are getting the most out of our experience and our brain is firing hidden neurons, reminding us that perhaps we've all been here before.
/kff
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