“I recently responded to a friend’s Facebook post. She had posted a picture from her past. I commented on how nice it was to see the photo and what great memories it brought back.
She then responded to my post with a cringe-worthy comment, asking if I remembered a certain night with “so and so.”
I do remember those days well. They are buried deep — just where I want them. My family (kids, husband, other relatives, etc.) see these responses.
I have no intentions of sharing stories of youthful indiscretions with the aforementioned FB friend. I just wish everyone would be mindful of comments made beyond “nice picture” or “brings back memories.”
I’m sure I’ll catch a lot of heat from readers, but I want to keep my past to myself.
What do you think? — What’s Past is Past”
Dear Past:
I think you have a point here. Obviously there are certain things you don’t want aired out and yet your friend treated the reply button as a personal message between the two of you. It’s oversharing. Social networks are littered with oversharing. It sometimes makes you want to go all Eduardo Saverin on the computer and slam it on the table.
Here’s what you can do: 1) Ignore it and move on. 2) Delete your original response so people seeing the responses won’t know she’s talking to or about you (unless she wrote your name/tagged you in the post). 3) Message her directly and say “Listen Linda, please don’t bring up my tryst with Todd from ages ago. I would prefer my kids and husband to not see or know about this part of my past.”
John Kidde Writes 