One of my favorite things to do, especially as my grandparents get older, is to learn more about them as people, not just as my grandparents. To understand their emotions and feelings on particular topics, their likes, dislikes, and passions. Social media, particularly Facebook, has been getting a bad rap recently, and a lot of the criticisms are definitely valid. There are certainly issues that need to be addressed around how news and posts are shared and from where, and how we self-select into echo chambers. However, I remain passionate about social media as a tool for connecting people and bringing our world together. Besides the evidence I've seen in my previous digital marketer life of these connections, I will always be grateful that Facebook revolutionized my relationship with my 93 year old grandfather.

First of all, my grandfather is a boss on paper. He’s 93, and does 2 hours of yoga every morning, plays 18 holes of golf 3-4 times a week (no golf cart for him), and still sits on several boards of companies that require regular overnight business trips across the country. His handshake will leave your hand throbbing for a good minute, and he doesn’t speak much, but when he does he’s thoughtful and authoritative in equal measure.

I love and respect my grandfather and am immensely proud to be his granddaughter. But, until a few years ago, our weekly phone conversations fell pretty flat. Past the usual “how are you, what are you doing,” we didn’t have that much to say to each other. There was no real insight into how each of us viewed the world and how our experiences shaped our perspectives.

Then, a couple of years ago, we gave him an iPad. He was immediately totally tech-savvy, reading all his newspapers and magazines online and even streaming video. He also downloaded Facebook and friended all his grandchildren and grand nieces and nephews. Now, our our phone and rare-in person conversations are full of our thoughts on current events, news articles, and my activities of the week (all faithfully documented online, like a true millennial). We also regularly comment on each others' Facebook posts, creating a true, ongoing dialogue. I give credit to Facebook for giving me insight into my grandfather and allowing us to share stories with each other. For bringing us together virtually, though we are 7,000 miles apart.