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Hi, I'm @csalley. Six months ago, you couldn't have convinced me to utter, or type, those words. Six months ago, I was convinced I needed face-to-face interpersonal contact—the kind of emotional and intellectual stimulation evoked while chatting over a cup of coffee. I thought that a computer dehumanized people. A computer took the very soul out of someone's being and reduced them to type on a page. No, better yet, it reduced them to 140 characters. What about body language? What about tone of voice, laughter, tears and hand gestures? Were they all to be lost to a or a ? My husband, @bsalley, signed me up for a Twitter account six months ago, and my life has forever changed.

@bsalley wanted me to hold him accountable, and by having an account, I could watch who he was "following."

"I really don't want this account, honey," I explained. "I already have a Facebook that I don't have time to keep up with."

We're a couple in our early thirties, with two amazing little boys, trying to get ahead in life, and my husband wanted to network. "OK," I relinquished, and began to watch his updates. "Besides," he later mentioned, "you could always connect with other moms in the area." Well, that was my hook! I took the bait and began an occasional update about my kiddos. To my surprise, several women began following me, immediately. They laughed at my connotations (you know "ha ha" "lol"), and we seemed to have a connection of sorts. This was a little fun, I had to admit.

Before long, I made connection with several local moms, and we had our first "tweet-up." Wow, that face-to-face contact I longed for was finally coming to pass. You see, my husband, son and I moved to our little town almost two years ago. I endured a very trying pregnancy shortly after moving and several of those months were spent on bed rest. Between jobs, children, bed rest and the like, the last thing I wanted to try to figure out was how to make new friends … and I needed friends.

My new Twitter friends have evolved. They've become the launching stage for our local MOPS group. We've sat down over coffee, visited in rooms full of screaming children, gone for walks to get in shape together. Yes, these Twitter friends are the beginning of some beautiful new friendships. Some I will get to meet face-to-face. Others, I may only have a chat and a quick "lol" with, but all have found a new place in my heart. All of my @friends have given me hope that there is a way to connect with people and develop relationships, even in the midst of a fast-paced life.

Cara Salley is wife to Brian Salley and mom to Cody (1) and Darrin (5). She lives in Alabama, where she pastors, alongside her husband, at Cornerstone Life Church. She's helping to launch and coordinate her second MOPS group.

Copyright © 2010 by the author or Christianity Today International/MomSense magazine. Click here for reprint information on MomSense.

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