The online world can be unbelievably cruel, just as the real world can. Social media and other online platforms make it easy to spread lies or leave hateful comments. They also enable people to create fake identities or share only the good parts of their lives. They encourage us to seek approval and validation based on how many likes, claps, or followers we get.
Thankfully, like the real world, the online world can also be a beautiful place. Today, I want to share some of the places I’ve found beauty online. I hope you will do the same in the comments.
Beautiful Videos
There are so many beautiful videos on YouTube. This one by Tim Janis is my current favorite. It combines the beauty of butterflies, birds, flowers, and the sounds of nature with Tim’s instrumental music, which is also quite beautiful. I now watch it every morning as I journal, and it never fails to calm me and lift my spirits.
Another favorite, which I mentioned in a previous newsletter about the power of music, is this version of Pachebel’s Canon in D, which I consider one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever created.
The other video I highlighted in that previous newsletter was one that combines the beauty of Native American flute music with the beauty of nature. You can find it here.
What kind of videos do you consider beautiful? Please include descriptions of and links to your favorites in the comments. They don’t have to be nature or music videos; inspirational speeches or other encouraging words can be beautiful too!
Beautiful Online Communities
Public groups with rules to make the space as safe and supportive as possible, and moderators who enforce those rules, can be wonderful ways to find kindred spirits. For instance, I recently discovered evolvingfaith.com, which offers free public and private online groups. Their about page says:
Evolving Faith exists to cultivate love and hope in the wilderness, pointing fellow wanderers and misfits to God as we embody resurrection for the sake of the world.
It goes on to describe the group’s values:
We envision a community where the thirsty become water-bearers, the hungry become bread-makers, the wounded are our healers, the misfits become friends, and the wanderers find a home.
Best-selling author Rachel Held Evans (who died in 2019) co-created Evolving Faith, and the group’s 2022 online conference in October will include Barbara Brown Taylor and Brian McLaren among its many presenters.
I was already a fan of those three authors, so I was thrilled to find this site!
There are many other places to find beautiful online communities, including free support groups that meet on Zoom or chat on websites. The weekly online chat for Substack’s newsletter writers has helped me build connections with other writers and discover some great newsletters I probably would not have found on my own.
You can also find (or start) a private Facebook group for people with similar interests, careers, medical diagnoses, etc.
I am an active participant in several private Facebook groups, including SPRING-NUTS (for Bruce Springsteen fans) and Medium Writers Academy: Writers Mastermind. I also am one of the administrators of Women in Ministry Online (WIMO), which has been a wonderful source of support for more than a decade.
For information about online support groups (and other resources) related to mental health, a good place to start is NAMI’s (National Alliance on Mental Illness) website.
Now it’s your turn! Where do you find beauty in the online world? How have you benefitted from participating in online communities? What have you learned online that has helped you change some aspect of your life, or help someone else change theirs? Please leave a comment and share the online spaces that have brought more beauty into your life!
Yes! Here is something I wrote a while back on similar themes.
"While things seem bad right now, and may even seem to getting worse by the day, there is an alternative perspective: that the signs are we are awakening to something better, and these times are just the death throes of the old, and the birthing pains of the new. There are definitely more and more of us waking up to what is going on, and becoming aware that there are better, healthier ways for us to be in the world. The online world, and groups just like this one, are allowing those of us who glimpse it to gather and amplify.
One doesn't have to look far in this world to see new enlightened leadership emerging, from the likes of Dr Stephen Porges, Dr Iain McGilchrist, Dr Gabor Mate, Prof. Andrew Huberman, Lex Fridman and many, many others. More people are listening to them now... and so there is still reason to be hopeful."
ps this was posted in a facebook group, "The Vagus Study Group" which has been a source of much sustainance for me.
Hi Wendi. Thanks for your insightful share. I'm someone who uses social media and tries her best to not be used by it, lol. I'm introverted, which means I'm mindful of how much stimulation my system can handle in my online and offline environments before crashing. Lol.
So I love the people I've come to know, such as yourself, over Medium. It's my favorite social media platform that is unlike any other. (No instant BS like on Instagram, haha). That's about it. I've been most consistent on Medium because I love writing and learning. It serves me and it serves others. It's an online win-win. :)