Saying goodbye can be tough. Ending any relationship can mean a sense of loss, the hole after a tooth is gone. For others, it may mean the release of the claw clutching at your heart. A poem that comes to mind is Spike Milligan’s about farewell:

‘Help, help, ‘ said a man. ‘I’m drowning.’

‘Hang on, ‘ said a man from the shore.

‘Help, help, ‘ said the man. ‘I’m not clowning.’

‘Yes, I know, I heard you before. (Read the rest)

Alas, when cries for help go unheeded, one must find a way to separate.I remember the first few times I posted on Facebook, relied on Facebook to connect with family and share photos of gatherings. How sweet the memory. Soon, I was logging in to see what others were sharing, to ask, “Are they OK? How’s their life?” These windows into their lives provided insights into their happiness, and allowed me to draw a happy breath.

Still, like the man on the shore who watches one and sees the dark forces without taking action, you left me to drown. You let me drown amidst the hate and rhetoric of the 2016 election. The final straw came when you labeled my two posts about puppies out of alignment with your guidelines. I was shocked, disappointed, and couldn’t understand how puppies could be bad, but politics good. You just don’t care enough, Facebook, and for that, I’m out, to quote the immortal words of those millionaires on Shark Tank. 

You know, there was a point I thought I might never say goodbye. It made sense to stay connected to family via Facebook, but now I know, there are better ways. It’s time to say goodbye, to leave you behind for my personal life. My professional work requires me to stick with you, so I suppose, I’ll get my fix in that way (but you’re gone from all my mobile devices).

Without you, I am a better person. Without you, I am accomplishing more than I ever have. Without you, I am returning to the life and people I once loved because I know they still love me. To my addiction, this is goodbye. I never want to see you again. I am moving forward.

Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin’s blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure