On Saturday I enjoyed a day off but still (mostly out of habit from getting up SO early during the week) was up by 6:30 a.m. only to find that my wife already had firm control of the remote control and had the TV locked on NBC for Royal Wedding coverage. Certainly planned appointment viewing for her. As for me, I did dishes, laundry (both very out of character, I know), went to the gym, got a haircut, and got doses of the nuptials here and there all day. I didn’t make a specific effort to watch, but I did think it was kind of interesting, and certainly didn’t make a point to call my wife “stupid” for watching it or point out that I couldn’t understand why she was watching it. Not that I was aware of much-I missed the Preakness too and never thought about it until later in the evening. But the wedding, for me, was just there. No big deal either way.
That’s why it surprised me to much (and annoyed me a bit) to read the negative posts on my social media feeds, where people either wanted to specifically point out that they had “no interest” in watching, were not watching, and even some stated that they couldn’t understand what the fascination is with the Royals (and that’s just scratching the surface of some of the negative vitriol that read).
It reminded me of something my Mom taught me when I was little…”If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.” What a lost art that is. Social Media has taught us to blurt out what we think without thinking about how it sounds or how it makes us look. That kind of nastiness that I saw on Saturday is certainly not a good look for any of us. Perhaps as a society we need to re-visit some of those old lessons Mom taught us…
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