Facebook is living through its first day as a publicly traded stock and I wanted to reflect on the non-monetary value that the social network has brought to our journey.
I was relatively late to join Facebook. I hated the idea of being found so easily and I had no clue why anyone would want to know what I was up to every minute. However, my entire high school reunion was planned on Facebook, so I either had to join or be stuck in the 90s. Over the years, Facebook and I grew into a comfortable relationship. I am not embarrassed to admit that this journey even made me dependent on Facebook. Without Facebook, we would have had a very different travel experience.
Without Facebook, we would not have been as connected
We realize that we aren’t doing the best job of individually keeping in touch with friends and family. This blog is our way to let you know what going on in our lives. It’s a larger task to find out what is happening in yours. Facebook fills us in. Five minutes a day tells us who is running a marathon, who is pregnant, who cooked a soufflé for the first time, and who just got at dog. Ava and Kayan also see pictures of their friends, leading Ava to say things like, “Oh, that’s Max. I almost forgot his style.”
Without Facebook, we would not have a network of traveling families
The Facebook Families on the Move Group has been a source of information and inspiration. This group has helped us out with travel planning, answered questions on malaria, hooked us up with play dates and been an source of support for a life on the road. We have not met most of these families but, thanks to Facebook, have formed life long friendships with like minded people. If you want to get to know some of these families, check out our monthly writing projects.
Without Facebook, we would have missed out on experiences
When we post an update on our destinations, we get suggestions from friends or local connections. The power of Facebook helped us employ an wonderful African refugee as our nanny in Istanbul. Thanks to Facebook, we created an instant network in every place we went. Groups such as I Love Chiang Mai and Istanbul Moms were instrumental in making us feel at home in each of our new locations.
Facebook’s mission is to make the world more open and connected. For this family they have succeeded. Yiamas (cheers in Greek) to Facebook today.
