A week ago, a “follower” of my Facebook Page sent a message to me via PM, telling me that she noticed that my posts are getting shorter than they were before. She then told me to keep my posts very short in my Facebook Page since my readers will not care to read long posts and thus the “posts and their message will just be ‘sayang’ (wasted) since they will not be read by the netizens”. While I truly appreciate my “follower’s” genuine concern that my posts be truly read by those who received them via notification or by those who viewed them on my Facebook Page, I must honestly confess that I do not really write my posts primarily for the netizens. I have always considered myself literary hedonist, be it in reading or in writing; in that I read books and write my views on things and events out of sheer pleasure of reading and writing them. Modesty aside, let me tell readers of my posts that way back in 1987; I became a Feature Editor of our college-wide school paper when I was just a fourteen year-old high school student—while the rest of the members of the Editorial Board were all college students. During my stint as Feature Editor in our college-wide school paper, I wrote articles that I was deeply interested in writing or describing. Similarly, when I was yet in my elementary years, I regularly kept a diary—and some of my diaries are still with me, while others are already destroyed by past typhoons or eaten by termites there in our house in Leyte. Even during my childhood years, I wrote my views and feelings about things and events just for the sake of sheer pleasure in writing-out my thoughts. I am a literary hedonist, and feeling pleasure in writing is the very reason why I write articles, daily journal entries: and this is still the very reason why I post my views on my Facebook Page. With respect to my posts in my Page, I am not denying that I also think and hope that my views will also be read by those who visited my posts—I also wish that my advocacies will be picked-up by my readers; but these things are beyond me since it will be my readers who will decide whether they will read my posts or not, and it’s up to them whether they will also pick-up on my social advocacies and my religious or political views or not. I cannot dictate or force my views onto the systems and mindsets of people—I simply do not have any hold on these with respect to my readers. Therefore, let me reiterate this fact: I write my posts primarily for myself and for my pleasure. I write just to let-out from deep inside me what I strongly feel about things, issues, and events. Since I write essays and posts primarily as my emotive and therapeutic venue of letting-out deep feelings and thoughts about almost everything I thought about as of the moment; then there are posts that are very long and there are posts that are short—depending on my feelings about things, issues and events. Yes!—for me, writing (as well as reading) is therapeutic. I wrote my posts based on what spurs me from within, what strikes me right from the inner core of my being, on what I think to be my honest views on certain issues of the day. Yes, there are advocacies in my posts—and as a person, I must admit that I have biases and prejudices with respect to this or that issue. But as I already said, I write my posts primarily for my own enjoyment, sheer pleasure and out of a need for an outlet of what I really come to think about things, events and issues. Therefore, whether netizens read my posts or not does not really matter for me. Whether they believe with me in my advocacies and my religious beliefs or political views, these are the least of my concerns. If they read them, its double joy for me. If they believe with me, then I will be doubly happy! In fact I do read my long and short posts which I posted previously in my Page, and I find enjoyment re-posting them (if I find them relevant again for the time); as well as re-reading them—as it felt very nice deep within me to reminisce what I felt during those times I was writing them, and it is also nice to re-live what I thought-of as of that particular time. Writing for me is primarily for the sake of writing. Yes, I do invite people to read my posts: if somebody reads them, then that would be very nice: but if no one bothers to read, it doesnt really matter to me. To write my views and post them in my Page is already a source of immense enjoyment for me. It’s not really sayang or waste of my time and effort because I know deep within me that there are others—no matter how few, or even just one person—who will care to read if they like to, despite the length of the post. That’s how I think about writing my posts. I do not nor will not sacrifice substance and reflection in my write-ups for the sake of popularity in my posts or for the Facebook “likes” of my readers. I am a literary hedonist. Reading is an enjoyment in itself. Writing is a reward in itself. Both reading and writing should be pursued for the pleasure and enjoyment of just reading and just writing. Writing is enjoyment itself. Other things like readers, followers, netizen-consumers, Facebook “likes”, “shares” and readership are just secondary add-ons to me and to my writings… My posts are not really “sayang” nor will it be ever “sayang” as far as I am concerned. (Written by Prof. Henry Francis B. Espiritu on July 31, 2013 at 8:29 PM.)
Posted on: Thu, 31 Jul 2014 13:55:42 +0000
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