By Megan Kilpatrick
May 13, 2016 | Portland, Oregon
I don’t Tweet much. That might come as a surprise to some folks who’ve been online these last few days, but most of the time I don’t even keep Twitter on my devices. But at large conferences like General Conference, I find it adds rather than distracts from my experience. There are so many people, and so much to do! Twitter allows me to peek into other areas and experiences to stay connected to what is going on, because I can never be in all of the places I want to be. It also allows me to engage with others when I might not otherwise.
There are definitely folks here at General Conference with whom I don’t agree. But on Twitter, we’ve had engaging conversations, challenged each other, learned from each other, given each other grace. We’ve told personal stories, talked engagement of young people, swapped pictures of our kids. Its been respectful, even when we disagree, and we’ve been grateful for the conversation. There’s also people who have been following from home who have had some wonderful insight as well.
Of course, there are always the trolls, those who stir up trouble just because they can. Sometimes I think their only purpose is to distract and confuse, and it’s hard to remain kind and not get angry.
It’s also hard to answer deep questions about my faith in only 140 characters! Thankfully, one of the nice things about social media is that I have the luxury to put down my phone and simmer for a few minutes. Ultimately, I choose to answer in love, as do the vast majority of us in the conversation. Thank heavens!
Megan Kilpatrick is the mother of a very rambunctious toddler, other half to her husband, and Clinical Nurse Specialist (RN) who helps nurses reach their fullest potential. She spends most days juggling, putting out fires, and walking on tightropes, but in her spare time she likes to cook, craft, and get outside.
Photo Credit: “Conversation” by Flickr user Valery Kenski, CC BY 2.0.
