On Christmas Eve day, I was perusing my Facebook account and noticed that I had a new friend request. I clicked the link to find that it was my Tito Danny. I ignored the request so that I could take a moment to think about what it would mean to accept to be his "friend." I'm a fan of Tito Danny. He's funny, he drinks and he makes good conversation. He's one of my "older" relatives (I'm guessing 25 years my senior) whom I don't mind being around. Later that afternoon, I returned to Facebook and decided to search under the name "Makabenta." I found that my dad had also created an account. Interesting. I clicked "ignore" for Tito Danny's request and then headed off to dinner with the in-laws.
On Christmas Day, R and I, along with my brother, headed over to my folks' house for lunch. My parents recently returned from a 6-week stint in the Philippines and this was the first time they had all of us under one roof to share stories from their trip. As they began to tell us about how Patricia is in a band, and how she knows Miguel, my brother and I were quick to reply, "We know." My parents replied with, "How do you know these things?" And we replied in unison, "Through Facebook!"
And so the generation gap begins to close...
My dad 'fesses up that he too had joined Facebook, inspired by the few invitations he's received to join, the most recent from Tito Danny. I smiled, and then interjected, jokingly, but serious, "Just to let you know, dad, I will not be adding you as a 'friend' on Facebook." He seemed to have understood and admitted that he wasn't sure exactly how to use it, but that he had found a friend or two. We moved on to other subjects and no one seemed to have been bruised from the conversation about Facebook.
A few days later, I received another friend request. I clicked on the link to find that it was Tito Danny, again! Boy, this guy is persistent. Ha! In addition, I noticed a new name pop up in my "People you may know list:" Edgar Makabenta. Dad had also figured out how to add a profile picture; he selected his senior high school picture. "Appropriate," I thought, considering most people on Facebook are looking for long-lost friends. Considering my dad began to use text messaging before I did, I was sure that he would quickly catch on to Facebook.
For the last couple of days, my dad's picture and name have been popping up in my "People you may know" list, mocking me each time I log in. Today I decided to post a new status: "Liza thinks it's funny that her dad is in her 'People you may know' list." So far I've received a handful of status comments varying from people who have added all of their Tito's and Tita's, to people confessing that their worse fear is their parents joining Facebook.
Quite frankly, I have nothing to hide on Facebook. Everything is realistically portrayed, and I don't have an alter-ego or anything to hide. I've already invited my folks to read my blog at their leisure, but I guess Facebook is where I draw a virtual line in the sand. I'm just not ready for the gap to be closed, therefore I will keep it ajar. We can share notes about Facebook, I can teach you how to use applications, but Dad (and I mean this in the nicest, gentlest way possible): I love you like a father, but I will not be adding you as a "friend." Just sayin'.
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