I Like It: not another Caitríona Balfe appreciation post
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Finding Friendship and Gratitude in Social Media
Today is one of those rare days when I feel grateful. It could be the wine or the excessive amount of chocolate I just consumed, but for whatever reason, today I feel grateful. These moments of gratitude are few and far between these days, so for now, I lean into the gratitude and welcome the inspiration.
At 29, just about 3 months away from my next decade of life, I am reminded of the journey I took to get to where I am and of the people I met along the way. Friends, family members, coworkers, teachers, supervisors, patients, therapists. In one way or another, these people helped to morph my life into the crazy, messy, yet beautiful life I lead today.
For the past week, I have been living in a whirlwind. After a weekend away for Santa Barbara International Film Festival and some other life transitions, my brain is filled with a jumble of thoughts and emotions that make it hard to focus on much of anything these days. Amongst the emotional scramble taking up space in my mind, I am filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude, specifically for Caitríona Balfe and for the community I discovered because of her.
For the past nearly 3 years, I have found myself immersed in the most beautiful community, a group of women and men of all ages from around the world connected by a common admiration of Caitríona Balfe, Outlander, and most recently, Belfast. Many of us have found comfort in this community during times of struggle and adversity and have found joy and celebration during life’s victories. For me, this support has been my anchor throughout the pandemic, increased stress at work, losses, and personal struggles.
There is often a stigma around social media and the relationships that evolve from the various platforms. We’ve all heard that “internet friends aren’t real friends”, that the relationships we form are superficial given the nature they were formed. To these people, I say BULLSHIT. In fact, several of the relationships I made because of social media are some of the most genuine and fulfilling relationships in my life. I’ve flown to Indiana to watch Belfast with friends and drink $17 margarita pitchers. I’ve flown to Ohio to sing Karaoke and dance to Everlasting Love. I’ve flown to California to celebrate Caitríona at SBIFF with some of my favorite people. None of this would be possible without the power of social media.
Words cannot adequately describe how grateful I am for the friends I’ve made because of Caitríona. It is within this BalfeNation community that I found my rocks and my greatest supporters, my besties, my inspirations, my AAAs (derived from the matching first initial of our names). Despite living in different states and leading different lives, we were brought together by a love and admiration of Caitríona. Initially connected by Outlander, it was the movie Belfast and “Belfast era” that solidified this friendship and gave us the famous AAA slogan “I like it.” (In reality, we more than liked it, we LOVED it…enough for me to see it 21 times, 10 of which were in theaters.) These friendships, although relatively new, are profound and will undoubtedly stay with me for the rest of my life. For that, I am forever grateful.
Today, as we head into another busy awards weekend, I am especially grateful for Caitríona herself and for the beautiful example she sets. Amidst the whirlwind of press and promo, red carpets and photoshoots, and everything in between, Caitríona has consistently served as an example of grace and humility. Never straying from the difficult topics, Caitríona serves as an advocate and uses her platform to raise awareness for various social issues and charitable causes (even completing Cameos to support Choose Love amongst the award season craziness and life as a new mom). It is through Caitríona that I began to challenge my own views of the world and see things from new and differing perspectives. I’ve also discovered the value of self-care and self-growth and learned the importance of being an advocate for myself and for others around me. Caitríona, in everything she is, constantly inspires me to be a better person and helps me to see the beauty in the world around me.
After the excitement of this past weekend at SBIFF and the celebrations that ensued, I am also incredibly grateful for the joy that Caitríona has brought to my life. After losing both of my parents and battling my fair share of adversity, finding joy is something I have struggled with for much of my life. Since discovering Caitríona and the incredible community she influences, I have found a new sense of happiness. Through Outlander, Belfast, CB Book Club, and social media, I began to rediscover joy and a connection to others that had been missing from my life for so long. This sense of connection provided me with a new freedom to push past the confines of my bubble and expand the limits of my comfort zone by traveling and exploring new books, music, tv/movies, recipes, fashion, skincare, and so much more. (My skin has never looked better but my bank account has not.)
Today is one of those rare days when I feel grateful, and today, that gratitude is overwhelming. As I look back on the past year, so much of this gratitude stems from Caitríona and from this incredible community that has become such a meaningful part of my daily life. I feel truly blessed to be a part of something so special. Even more so, I feel honored to call myself a fan of such an incredibly kind and beautiful soul. Without knowing it, Caitríona has touched the lives of so many of us in the most profound of ways and influenced lasting friendships. Each day, she inspires me and serves as an example of the type of woman I hope to become over the next decade of my life.
Caitríona, for your generosity and kindness, for your endless hard work and dedication, for all that you do and all that you share with us, thank you.
And to my AAAs, Arika and Ann-Elizabeth, who support me and put up with my weirdness every day, thank you. I’m lucky to know such cool, fun gals. Luuuurve you both forecer. #comehere #ilikeit
