The (first) Great Unblocking

Today, I opened my BLOCKED Facebook list and Unblocked 90% of that very long, long list.

 When I first got on Facebook on, February 27, 2009, I was extremely protective of my presence there. I made it my mission to learn everything there was to know about navigating all the privacy settings so that I could maintain the lowest of low profiles.

 This was in keeping with my life in all directions. Hide. Control.

I built that blocked list up over the years and as I went down it today, unblocking the hell out of (most) people, I realized once again how much I used to think that other people thought about me. I am LOLing as I write this. It’s ridiculous.

I proactively blocked a lot of people to avoid their friend requests. I blocked others because they were friends of those people. Of the people that I unblocked today, 75% of them I DO NOT EVEN KNOW.

 I posted different content back then. I would caption a random internet photo every morning. A lot of it was edgy and sometimes dark or bizarre.

When these photos pop up in my “Memories” I stand by 95% of those old posts. I still think they were (mostly) funny and I enjoyed coming up with the captions. It was creative and it was easy because it was a muscle I was working. I did it every day.

But the content wasn’t for everyone and for that reason, my friends on FB were my friends in real life- with a couple of exceptions.

Back then, I was terrified of the possibility of secondary and tertiary FB relationships. Terrified that someone who knew someone that I knew, might somehow make their way to me and want to be my FB friend.

Yeah, I just said that out loud.

So, as I looked at that list today, all that blockage didn’t feel in keeping with who I am today. Who I want to be more of today. The open-hearted part of me I’m trying to reclaim.

 I went down the list and UNblocked all kinds of people- and like I said, most of them I didn’t even know… I’m laughing again.

 For the people I did know, I let my heart and solar plexus chakras tell me whether it was time to unblock those people. Yes, that means there is still a list of blocked people. I’ll revisit them on down the road.

This was a great exercise for me today.

I had a physical response to it.

I feel lighter, freer, and encouraged to do more of this kind of thing.

Coming up on my 13-year FB anniversary I still only have 199 friends. Most of them are in real life friends but several of them, I’ve never met. I’ve become more open to accepting friend requests and I’ve become more open to sending them.

Another small step forward into the light for me.

Unblocking…

Dismantling tall, carefully constructed piles of bricks…