‘Pebbling’ is the new term for when people share memes and GIFs with friends and family.
The term “pebbling” originates with the gentoo penguin. They are known to pick up pebbles in their beak and carry them to their partners or potential partners as a gift.
They do this to help build their nest, but it’s also a gift that acknowledges the relationship between them.
Apparently, pebbling is a big thing in dating. Sharing of memes and gifs as a form of love language. Spotting something and sharing is a form of connection. It’s the acknowledgment that you were thinking of someone and knew what they might like.
I have never sent a meme or a GIF to anyone in my life, and I probably never will. I don’t care about them and have never been enamoured with them.
However, I often send links to friends and family. I read something online and think, “I know someone who would love to read this.”
Then I send. Almost always via text message.
And yes, it’s a signal that I’m thinking of the person, but more importantly, it’s an indication that I know the person.
Unlike that friend or family member who forwards you emails and sends you an endless series of links and memes, I am discriminating about how and when I send something to a friend. I’m not a link spammer. I don’t inundate my friends and family with every story I find on the internet that I find entertaining or enlightening.
I only send it if I approve of it and know someone who would specifically enjoy it as well.
I also love it when someone does the same for me.
My friend, Kathy, sent me a Washington Post story last week about the man who was found not guilty of assault for throwing a sandwich at a federal agent.
That same week, she sent me a photo of an Egg McMuffin with the message:
“Thinking of you as I eat an egg McMuffin at the airport.”
I loved both.
My friend, Chris, sent me a photo of an article in a newspaper about how social media is making children dumb.
I’ll be writing about it soon.
My friend, Aaron, sent me a NY Times piece about small talk that I finally got around to reading this week. It was excellent. I’ve already shared it with others. I may be using it in a book I’m writing on loneliness.
A client sent me an article about me that I had not seen. Another sent me a piece analyzing the play of New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye. Another sent me a piece on storytelling in the nonprofit world.
I received all of this just this week.
Each time I received one of these links, stories, or images, I was happy.
Someone was thinking about me.
How lovely.
Pebbling.
I like this.
An easy way to let people know that you’re thinking about them and know their heart and mind.
In many ways, this blog is a form of pebbling. I have an idea. I find a story to write about and discuss. I experience a moment in the world. I engage in an interesting conversation. I get into an argument with a stranger. I find myself with a thought to share. I encounter something amusing or tragic or hilarious.
Then I write it here, thus sharing it with tens of thousands of readers. Far less targeted, but still a form of sharing.
Pebbling.
Perhaps I’ll start trying to do this more often.
Or maybe I’m already doing it often enough.
Maybe I’m about to foul up pebbling in a big way.
