When You Lose an Online Friend

The New York Times today carried this article: How to Grieve for Online Friends You Had Never Met in Person.The people of this community, pro or con, friend or foe, are some of our best friends, and when we lose one of them it affects all of us deeply. Of those we have lost I think we grieved and celebrated them in the best way possible. Some of us here were key in leading the way in those efforts, for which we're all thankful. It isn't easy to lose a friend, online or not.I posted this as a comment to the article. My memory isn't perfect, apologies for any lapses:

quote:

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I've had the good fortune to have run an online discussion board for the past 18 years. Over that time we've lost three members, two of them significant contributors, and one of those two an administrator. We grieve together just like a family, and if possible we reach out to their families and tell them how important they were to us.

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--Percy

When we lost Robin Rohan, I grieved as I would grieve for anyone I knew of who died. His death caused me to read most of the posts he had written here, and I found that he was, in fact, an interesting person.Buzsaw was more personal...as I had interacted with him more and read his posts while he was living.Asgara was the same--she and I had several conversations over the years and I respected her.To me, losing an online friend is like losing a coworker...we don't share interests apart from what brings us together, but there is a definite bond and level of respect and communion.

I certainly remember losing Robin Rohan and Buz, but what happened to Asgara??? And when?

In Memorium: Asgara

Oh, no.... that is terrible. She wasn't always the most vocal on the forum, but when she did speak it was always measured and principled.

Even in death she was measured and principled. Unlike the others, she knew that she may not make it but she never gave it a thought. She simply focused on why she needed and wanted to be alive and she was a class act as she chronicled her battle with cancer and told us of her grandchildren and what she was looking forward to doing. We can learn from that attitude.

I vacillated with the idea of taking Buzz’s quote out of my sig when he died. I’d had many conversations with himI left it in but I still can never be sure if I did the right thing in leaving it there.It does make me think of him when I read it.

If it makes you think of him, it is probably why you left it in. Buz had many quotes....as do all of us. If Faith ever dies, should I remove her quote from my sig? After all it reminds me so much of her. If I die, which quote would I be remembered by? As for you, Larni...I would have to dig to find a suitable epithet from your polished pen.