Does This Thing Have a Pause Button?

[tweetmeme source=”@shannonpaul”]
I know you’re probably reading this because you want to read up on social media and something to do with its impact on marketing and communications for business, but I needed to take a step back this last week.

It’s been a crazy year for me. My mom had a bout with cancer, I changed jobs and moved across the country from Detroit to Seattle and now I’ve lost one of the most consistently supportive presences in my life: my dog, Jupiter.

He was very old — thirteen years old — ridiculously old for a St. Bernard, but no amount of thinking on the matter prepared me for losing him. He has been by my side in three different cities over the last 13 years and he was with me for almost four years before my husband and I started dating.

It’s been difficult to concentrate on other things, not because I’m preoccupied with thoughts of him, but because I’m so afraid of forgetting him — his different looks and mannerisms, his smells (even the bad ones), and because I also look for reassurance everywhere I go that he is indeed okay.

I apologize if you came here today for something else, but I had to share where I’m at in order to begin to move forward — I hope that’s okay with you.

I promise the next time you come back here I will continue to share things related to social media marketing and communications. Hopefully you’ll even find it useful.

Today I had to use social media to help me remember my best friend and I just have to hope you’ll understand.

Unfortunately, we all know there is no pause button on life — online and offline, but sometimes I think it’s okay to let some things go on without you in order to give yourself a chance to regroup. What do you say?

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Tagged as: Grief, Hiatus, Social Media Break