#DearWorld
Once a quarter it was my mother’s turn to host her fellow church sisters for the all important discussion on community fundraising efforts.
The highlight of the afternoon was always the stories that flowed as freely as the tea and seemed to taste sweeter than the pastor’s wife’s famous milk-tart. As good humouredly as these stories were shared, they were always more tart than Aunt Judy’s lemon meringue, had more bite than Sister Mimi’s sausage rolls and had more holes than Mrs Cloete’s cream puffs.
This scene in our living room plays itself out daily on social media. Some call it fake news. I call it idle gossip.
Socrates, the Greek Stoic philosopher suggested 3 questions to ask that I think are still relevant today as you think about posting, sharing or liking a story on social media.
- Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to say is true?
- Is what you want to say something good or kind?
- Is this information you are sharing useful or necessary?
Today we are the Media. We choose what trends. How responsibly we use our voices matters even more.
