This morning, Facebook suggested I might want to connect with "Jim." The name struck a bell, and this person lives in the city where we met (if I have the right guy) over 50 years ago.  Given his home town and the background I remember, we could feasibly have those two Facebook friends in common.

I may follow up with a message asking if he is indeed the "Jim" from my teens.

Some people consider a Facebook match like this one as spooky.  Some see it as scary.  I see it as miraculous.  I see it as a metaphor for the metaphysical hypothesis that we are all, indeed, one.

Facebook is a place to explore our connectedness.  I know these three people, do I also know the fourth?  We went to the same high school.  We love cats.  We are inspired by the same wisdom literature.  We run, paint, sing, or write. The number and breadth of topics on which we may find fellow travelers and kindred spirits is nearly infinite.

Facebook is a place to build community.  I risk the accusation of naiveté in making such a statement, knowing as I do that experts deride virtual relationships as unhealthy alternatives to the real thing. I embrace the flesh-and-blood reality of living, working, and playing with others.  In addition, I love connecting across vast expanses of uncommon ground with people I may never meet face to face.

I share the Facebook experience with fellow life coaches, writers, beer lovers, Forest Service retirees, and alumni of every school I attended.  Last week, I "friended" two men in Australia who are starting a back-of-the-pack running group much like ours.  This morning I reached out to a former boss and a former professor.  And then there is "Jim."

Interacting on Facebook is, I admit, an addictive habit (along with checking email, the weather, the news, sports scores, inspirational passages-of-the-day, and Simon's new cat video on YouTube.)  I know that I risk tipping the balance from enjoying to craving online treasure.  I take that risk willingly. 

The weaving together of past and present relationships, deep and shallow ones, frequent and occasional ones into a colorful whole enriches my life and expands my horizon to a truly global scale. 

What is your experience with social media and other connections with people you may never meet in person?  Do you see it as escaping or enhancing your face-to-face engagement with life?