“The article is good, but read the comments!” Twice this morning people commented about a good article but then proceeded to say “but make sure you read the comments!” So I do. (I was raised that way I suppose.)

The comments are typical for internet comments. There are trolls, angry people, smart people, bitter people, clever people, kind people, people trying to make peace, and people who have given up but not so much to have given up posting comments.

Most comments don’t add a lot of light but some do. So why do we want to read the comments? I think it is the honesty and the community. The blogs of the trolls, the angry, the bitter, and the nearly checked-out don’t get linked to. They’re just not productive enough to drink the full draught, but when skimmed in shot-glass form something in us tastes community because we all know trolls without keyboards. Some of them are even trolls we love, even if we often would prefer to avoid them. Part of this virtual world is about giving us virtual permission to sense what we sense in regular life but in a watered-down way. So when the comments come through, and the trolls are doing their thing (but not too much, or we click away), and there are jewels interspersed, and lots of other folks that want to just encourage or simply be heard, part of us feels at home. Part of us knows that this virtual community that we are touching isn’t that different from the other communities we are involved with in a less virtual way.

So, in this Christmas season, God bless you, even comment trolls.