I mentioned in a recent column how the topics for my columns crop up from a variety of sources.  This month's topic formed in my head (as you might expect, during a dex-day) due to the convergence of three separate, but related items and events:

A recent posting to one of the Beacon columns or forums indicating the site is not much more than a place for everyone to come and drown their sorrows.

A conversation I had with one of my sons that's been an ongoing debate as to whether interacting online provides the same sense of community as interacting with people in person.

An article in my local newspaper about the current generation and whether texting and online communities are replacing face-to-face relationships.

I have always found face-to-face interaction preferable to interacting online. I'm the type of person at work that prefers to walk over and talk to someone rather than call or email them.  I also don't have a Facebook account, I don't tweet, and I've repeatedly ignored requests to join LinkedIn (due more to not having the time to devote to these sites as opposed to any particular aversion to them).

I think so much more can be communicated when you interact in person because you have the added benefit of seeing facial expressions, body language, etc.  The conversation also tends to flow much more smoothly and is less prone to misinterpretation.

To be honest though, until being diagnosed with multiple myeloma and coming across The Myeloma Beacon, I was never involved much with an online community.  Since then, I've come to appreciate the benefits an online community can provide.

Consequently, after reading the Beacon post mentioned above, I found it disappointing that someone would feel so negatively about the Beacon community, knowing how much I've benefited from it, and how many others have indicated they have benefited from it.

For me, there are two primary benefits to being part of an online community such as the Beacon.  First, such sites connect a large number of people with similar and related experiences - far more than would ever be able to interact face-to-face.  Second, such sites provide an accumulated wealth of experiences and knowledge that would be difficult to find elsewhere.

Admittedly, there are postings where people complain about what they are going through, but that's part of human nature and a community provides a means by which people can commiserate.  There are also postings where people argue, but guess what, people don't always agree with each other.  The majority of posts, however, are about people sharing knowledge, relating experiences, reaching out to each other, supporting each other, and lifting each other up.

So, even though I've never met any of the people I interact with on the Beacon site, it has become a source of community for me.

I have come to know people through their postings and email exchanges with me. I have come to know the other columnists through their writings.  I have come to know others through their personal blogs.

I have also come to care about people in this community as I follow their stories.  I get concerned if I don't see postings from people for a while.  For example, this past summer I hadn’t seen postings from one particular patient for a while and was concerned about him.  I was truly relieved when I heard he was okay and getting ready for his stem cell transplant.

I shed tears for the people that have found out they have cancer, for those that struggle on a daily basis against this disease, and for those that don't survive this disease.  But I also find joy in the successes and victories that people achieve against this disease.

I still prefer in-person relationships to online relationships, but recognize the value of the online community.  I am also somewhat more amenable to my son's arguments in favor of online communities now that I feel part of such a community.

I hope everyone visiting this site experiences a similar sense of community.

Peace, and live for a cure.