As much as I'd love to leave Meta, I'm not going to the new social media app Blue Sky. It's not going to be safe. It may be safer than now, but how long until the bigots and trolls show up and ruin it, too? How long until the big corporations start showing up and making every other post an ad?
If its on the internet, it's not safe, period. Never has been, never will be. Even if one has a dedicated server, team or program to fight the bigots and trolls--they always find a way in and ruin it for everyone. Its exhausting. The devs may either sell out or quit from exhaustion and for safety.
How long until Blue Sky turns into Meta or X? Or like countless other apps and forums...just disappears? Covenspace, Witchbook, and countless other safe websites disappeared because of hateful willfully ignorant cowardly assholes.
Also maybe I'm just being paranoid, but can we trust whoever created it to not just be a Fafnir Trump minion, collecting targets?
Maybe it's time we went back to 'old fashioned ways' and sought out local communities? Albeit that's easy for me, since Central Ohio has such a huge Pagan/Witch/Spiritual Community. But it didn't get that way because everyone's online. Although online did help people find each other. There are many pros and cons to the internet, and as much as I'm growing to hate it, I also am grateful for all of the positives that it's brought to my life.
But the internet is so toxic and dangerous.
Also also I've been looking at my business numbers and this whole P25 thing, and wondering if being online is even worth it anymore. The internet was meant to be a tool and to connect people, and yet it's just so toxic. Sure folks are connected, but so are the bad ones. According to others, pagans are low on the P25 target list, but it's still dangerous. Pagans have always faced shit from Christian fanatics and hate groups--some who were even law enforcement--I fear it'll get worse for us too.
I have my own mental health to think about.
I've got my kids to think about.
Yet as a Priestess and Seidkona, I also have an oathed responsibility to help my spirit and human communities, too. My Kindreds would never have me do anything that could hurt my children, but I still find myself at a crossroads.
After I left Facebook, although I dealt with the grief of losing friends and questioning what it means to have friends in this virtual day and age, I'm glad that I did...and I've been thinking about leaving the internet altogether. Including deleting my blogs, and I've had one since 2011. Although I'm not into drama, so I only have 8-20 people who read my posts, still. That and I hate that drama sells more than anything else, other than sex. I refuse to sell out and give up my principals for negative popularity and followers who're only looking for more sensationalism and shit stirring.
Numbers wise, I don't think that having an online presence actually helps my business. Followers aren't always customers and clients. Most of the non-friend followers that I have aren't even in Ohio. They're not people that I've met at events. They're not even out-of-state customers. Being online doesn't seem to be helping my business at all. I'm not making a profit or meaningful connections. Just dealing with a lot of crap from fighting the algorithms, copycat scammers that are making money (and I'm not) with cowardly tactics, and trolls. Also, I'm not even sure how many Followers are real people and how many are just bots.
I don't know that it's worth sacrificing my mental health anymore. Especially since I'm not even getting paid. And it no one ever leaves comments, so are real people reading my posts, or is it just bots and thieving farming scammers?
Will anyone really care if I leave? Do people actually look forward to seeing my posts? I know locally, people look forward to booking with me at events, because I've had people upset that I was fully booked. I have repeat clients (and some repeat customers for my handmade goods), and recommendations, which is always fucking amazing. So much love and thanks to the returning and the recommendations! Thank you for that trust. Thanks to the many other first-timers-never-returners who took a chance. I learned something from each of you about my abilities, strengths, and limitations that have helped future clients).
After years of trying to build communities and taking leadership workshops and courses, I've just accepted that I don't have the charisma to be a community leader, much less a builder. I'm better as a helper. I'll bust my ass to help, just give me direction.
Yet my Gods want me to focus more on the psychic and spirit work parts of my business. They don't want me to close Hearth Fox Oracle. They don't care so much about the stuff that I make, just to focus on the psychic and spirit worker parts. I'll admit that this year, I got caught up more in how can I make money and get product to move, and forgot why I started Hearth Fox Oracle in the first place. It wasn't just for income...it was to help people.
So I've been rethinking all of that. The last event that I did for this year, I focused on the psychic parts and why I do this work, and I actually did really well at the event. At these in-person events, the psychic part of my business always does way better than the handmade stuff that I sell. Always.
Then with Fafnir's win, I don't know what the future of my business is going to look like. I don't know if it's safe to keep working at events. I don't know if I should take a hiatus and maybe just focus on building up my skills to better serve the community or not.
I'm a damn good psychic and Oracle. I'm a damn good spirit worker, too. Those are 100% my strengths. I know locally people value me as a person, a mentor, a psychic, and a spirit worker.
Should I take a step back to work on my skills and work from the shadows while Fafnir Trump is in power ?
Should I stay online to help those who ask for guidance?
Should I step forward and focus more on my local communities?
I want to help people, but I also have to put my family's safety first.
I'm not going to make any decisions right now. I'm going to take time to think about it, and to see what's just speculation and what's fact. Where are my skills needed more?
Thank you for the support, follows, likes, bookings, and purchases (local and not; thanks to the Lurkers, too. I know I'd like more interaction, but I'm a Lurker too in some communities. Lurkers are valid.). I really do appreciate it, even if you're not a customer or client.
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- Priestess Oracle Kristy "Foxlyn" Tackett
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