If You Love Something...

[This is another essay that originally appeared in BUSTed magazine. Don't worry, we won't be quoting any Sting songs here, but the message is important, and we have an addendum.]

Thufir Hawat, the Mentat who served Duke Leto Atreides in Frank Herbert's Dune, said "Parting with friends is a sadness. A place is only a place."

I say bull! Especially in Second Life, where a place reflects the time, effort, and in special cases the love that its creator has put into it. A place is where  friends gather, and without it, they tend to lose touch and drift apart.

Who knows how many thousands in Second Life are finding this out the hard way now?

We in the prim breast subculture know about this kind of loss; after all, last year we lost Mammatus. Now, though, the closures seem to be coming thick and fast, or at least they're getting more publicity, and they're hitting far more people. Elysium Gardens: gone. Midnight Reflections: gone. The Minoan Empire: going soon, possibly definitely by the time you read this. Even the Lost Gardens of Apollo is (are?) gone! How many of you have not been there, have not had Apollo pointed out to you as a beautiful place to visit, explore, and dance? This isn't just entertainment; the Second Life presence of Fearless Nation, an organization that does real work to help people overcome post-traumatic stress disorder, is going away soon.

It's all too easy to assume that a place will be around to visit tomorrow, that it can get along without your attention and help, but it's not true. If you love a place, do what you can to support it. Find its owner and ask how you can help, before it's too late. 

ADDENDUM: Really, the above is a special case of what I should have said. If you love someone or the work they do, do what you can to support him or her or it--and don't pass up an opportunity to express your appreciation.