Have you ever wondered why people that you were NEVER friends with–in fact, actively did not like–all of a sudden want to be friends on Facebook?
The truth is that having a FB friend request has become the "You've Got Mail" of this new social media era. As in, "OMG–he wants to be my friend so I must be super cool".
But panic strikes when people that you didn't like much–back when, you know, you actually knew each other, like high school or college–ask you to be your friend. Which begs the question: If you were never friends back then, why be friends now?
I recently received friend requests from a guy who used to have trouble understanding the word "No," and a girl who never liked me (in fact, who used to actively and enthusiastically criticize me). Why do I have to re-live the memory of these personasnon grata?
The pressure that comes with the decision to accept or reject such friendship request is real. On top of that, the request comes complete with a picture of the person–which makes it even harder for me not to accept because I know that erasing the picture from my mind won't come as easily as it does online. Just writing about this makes me feel awkward.
FB is the place where we share stuff about ourselves. I share my reading habits, social causes I believe in, pictures of loved ones, my political views, enough to basically give someone an accurate snapshot about the kind of person I am.
So, why would I want to know this information about a person whom I never liked? Well, I don't.
I don't want to see your dogs, I don't want to see your kids, I don't want to see your latest vacation pictures, I don't want to see your house, your parties, your friends… I seriously don't, and mostly, I don't want you to see mine either.
High school wasn't even all that bad for me. I never felt inadequate and I also found my very best friends (to date) as a teenager. But that doesn't mean that I want to relive every moment. Does this make me immature? Maybe. Why haven't I been able to get over the fact that someone may not have been such a nice person back then?
Well, you know what? I don't care. So if I see a picture of any of you mean and awful people from the past–even if you have a friendly smile now–I will certainly hit delete.
Do you have a ton of Facebook friends? Would you "friend" someone who was mean to you in the past?
Image via Facebook
