I Got De-Friended On Facebook! [OPINION]

I am NOT very selective when it comes to befriending friends and family, which gives me more friends and acquaintances in real life.

Even if you disagree with something I post, or I disagree with something you post, I don’t block, de-friend or delete you: I embrace our differences and try to respect your opinion, even though it differs from mine.  If you post something that I don’t agree with, or goes against my beliefs, I don’t “react”, I “review”:  I will look at your argument or opinion, do some research, and try to see your side of things.  Even if we can’t see eye-to-eye on things in this life, I know that I will have more empathy for you if I listen to your argument or opinion and try to understand why you think the way you do.

I noticed recently that someone de-friended and blocked me on Facebook.  I was saddened when I realized this, because, face-to-face, we were friends (or so I thought), and got along well.  On Facebook, he would frequently respond to my posts negatively (which I encourage, because I am interested in hearing new things/arguments/points of view), but he would argue with opinion, or his feelings, and not facts.  I am usually up for a great discussion, (admittedly I don’t always counter with facts, but sometimes with hypothetical situations to try to shed new light, or a different light, on a situation, and encourage others to do the same), but his argument was usually shallow, and he would resort to shaming to try to get me to think his way.

I want to understand why you feel the way you do.  I want you to understand why I feel the way I do.  This is the way to develop compassion and empathy for one another.  Shaming is not the way to get it done.

We don’t have to agree on everything, or most of anything, but we must remember that we are all human.

I can’t help but feel sorry for the guy who blocked me.  I try to tell myself that I shouldn’t feel that way, but I feel as though he is so closed-minded that he can’t even stand to educate himself or step away from the situation and try to look at it from a different perspective.  I really didn’t care for the way he used Facebook comments to try to shame me into believing the same thing he believes, but I encouraged his participation in the discussion, even though he wasn’t always cordial.

I love going to the beach, but remember this:  if you spend your whole life on the beach, you’ll never know the grandeur of the mountains.  If you keep your head in the sand, all you will ever know is sand.

I haven't seen him face-to-face since he blocked me, but when I do, I'll update you as to why he blocked me, if he is willing to share.

Thanks for allowing me to vent my drama!