The Reighley Report

I witness something today that really struck me to the core.  A friend I worked with when I was music director at Bible Baptist Church in Wilmington died today in a tragic car accident.  I learned about it on Facebook.  The status posts at first where cryptic but became very clear, very fast.  First and foremost it is a tragic accident that took the life of a great human being far too early.  He leaves behind a great wife and two young children.  He had just stated a church in Greenville, Ohio.

What struck me is the online community and how the mechanism worked.  I study Facebook as a tool for eCommerce, in particular understanding online consumer behavior.  What struck me, was the I really need to take the “consumer” out of my study and put the work “human” in its place.  We all have basic human needs, and at our heart we have a compassion for others.  Look, at the end of the day we are all brothers and sisters under the skin.  We have a deep desire to love and be loved.  To be accepted.  Online communities are our modern day porch swing, where we can talk about our day.

I found myself reaching out to others in a strange way – electronically.  Friends that shared the grief of losing a friend.  People from West Virginia, Tennessee, and different parts of Ohio.  People right up the street and far away, some people that all we shared was the bond of know our friend and sharing in the shock.  This was all done virtually, but really in a strange way it held the same meaning.  I know I found myself refreshing the page to see if there was any additional information.

Putting the tragedy to the side for a moment, I think we really need to look at our online relationships in the community of cyberspace and realize it is important to our soul.  It helps us to be compassionate to one another.  A simple status update may brighten someones day, and at the end of the day, that is important.

Live life my friends, it is too short and too fragile.   God bless you all.