“A little consideration, a little thought to others, makes all the difference.” – Eeyore
About three weeks ago, I opened my laptop to start working and clicked on a Facebook message. A friend that I’d known from Miss O’s pre-school days had died. I burst into tears. It couldn’t be. She’s ten years younger than I am, her youngest child is only 11 years old. She loved being a mom more than anything and I couldn’t believe that she wouldn’t be there to see her beloved kids grow up.
And moreover, because I’d seen the posts where she’d had a car accident about nine months previous and then complications had kept coming up, I was bereft because I hadn’t done anything but post a couple of comments. She wasn’t someone I was particularly close to, but I had so much respect and adoration for her.
It hit me especially hard because I was also in the middle of reading Amy Weinland Daughter’s book, Dear Dana. Dear Dana, is a beautiful chronicle of a letter writing campaign – and a thoughtful reflection of how social media does and does not work for us when it comes to real relationships.
On the latest episode of the How to Share podcast, I was lucky enough to be able to talk with Amy about Dear Dana and the incredible insights she gleaned. Amy tells us how her project got started when she saw on Facebook that her friend from summer camp 30 years before had a son who was sick and needed prayers. Amy starting writing them letters.
She explains how this effort blossomed into a project to write each one of her 580 Facebook friends a letter. We talk about the level of effort involved in writing that many letters and how it was transformative for her.
Amy shares some of the research around the benefits of writing and we talk about the insights of what she learned about the benefits and limitations of social media in the process of her project. One of my favorite a-has is that we can use social as a jumping off points for real relationships because we lose the richness if there is no investment in relationships.
We talk about God-whispers and how listening to them can help us participate in making this world a better place. Amy’s perspective is so real and inspirational that I know it’ll leave you feeling motivated.
This is an incredible episode with a powerful story and loads of magic. I know you’ll love it.
Takeaways
- The most changed participant in the writing process is often the writer themselves.
- Writing doesn’t require formal skills or extensive practice.
- A simple act of writing can have a significant emotional impact.
- All you need is a postage stamp and a human heart to express yourself.
- The power of writing has always been within us, waiting to be discovered.
- Engaging in writing can lead to personal growth and transformation.
- You don’t need to write hundreds of letters to make a difference.
- The act of writing can break down barriers to communication.
- Everyone has the potential to express themselves meaningfully.
Here’s an incredible clip from Amy reminding us that it’s never too late to care:
Here are some ways you can watch this amazing and inspiring episode:
- The podcast player embedded below
- Click this link to watch in a browser: How to Share Impactfully with Social Media Friends with Amy Weinland Daughters
- Subscribe to How To Share on Spotify, Amazon Music, or Apple Podcasts
- Subscribing to the YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@howtosharepodcast
Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.
How to Share Our Luck with Gil Gillenwater – How To Share
Links for this post:
How to Share Impactfully with Social Media Friends transcript
Dear Dana on Barnes & Noble and Amazon
(featured photo from Pexels)
Surprised By Joy 