The nature of my life with cerebral palsy means that with few exceptions, most of my time is spent at home. As a consequence, the internet has become my portal to the outside world, and social media my conduit for communication. I have friends across South Africa, North America, Europe Australia and Asia, but when interactions are not bound by physical proximity, unexpected things start to happen. Here are just a few:
- Wanting to talk to someone, then realising they're still asleep because of an eight-hour time difference and you'll just have to wait.
- Learning a great deal about a friend's life before you know what their voice sounds like.
- Being able to conversate almost entirely by way of memes.
- Having your beliefs about the culture of other countries challenged, corrected and reshaped by the people who actually live there.
- Feeling elated that there are people in the world who actually "get you", but sad because they are thousands of kilometres away.
- Feeling more kinship with online friends than many people you've met in the real world. (Sorry if this hurts anyone's feelings, but it's the truth and I don't sugarcoat my views.)
Life is hard and I regularly experience profound, painful loneliness, but the people I've met while wandering the vast digital landscape are all kind, quirky individuals whom I am honoured to call my friends.
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