This colour is online (away).

“Are you on MSN Messenger? Add me”
“I’m on them all 🙂 What’s your email?”
“[something with 2000 in it]”

And that’d be that. Visits to random chat-rooms would dwindle, months of shared experiences would be forgotten as one branch of the Internet would start to evolve toward ever smaller, more private networks.

Two years later, my father would pass away. I’d travel the world, meet wonderful people in person.

Years on, my life would unravel and I’d sob in a ball, paralysed on a bed or bus. All those chat-room friends would probably have a far worse time but I would have no idea.

Capacity to be social would naturally wither. I would allow it.

***

Now I’m on the Internet all the days and nights, all my time awake and not. Too often I’ll avoid chatting altogether—via keyboard or otherwise. I have no idea how a lot of my friends are doing.

A common regret of the elderly is letting relationships die long before either person. I’m watching this play out in my own life and am scrambling to backtrack.

This colour is a reminder of the days of an endless-scrolling list of friends, and that the antidote is not to burn it.

Keep in touch? x

Keith Rogers is a web developer residing in Brighton and working in London, UK.