Over the past few weeks, it has become quite trendy to hate the new Facebook layout. From the dozens of invitations I’ve received to groups like “1,000,000 AGAINST THE NEW FACEBOOK LAYOUT!” and “SCRAP THE NEW FACEBOOK LAYOUT! (If it ain’t broke, don’t ‘fix’ it!)” to always-eloquent status updates like “John is NEW FACEBOOK SUCKS lol,” it seems that this is the new hot issue.

But this widespread outrage is not a reaction to the characteristics of the new layout itself but to the very principle of change. When I was a wee high school senior, Facebook was completely revamped to include what we now all know and love to stalk with—the news and mini-feeds. I instantly hated them. Why did I need to know that “Mary has a headache” or that Joe is now friends with Carly? The home page seemed cluttered and unnecessary. But the application quickly became beloved and familiar. That experience is exactly the same as the one everyone is struggling with now, and you have my word that you will get through it, and even decide that Facebook is better than ever.

First, the new organization simply makes more sense. The top bar still contains the same links, but the home page link is now placed before the user’s profile link. This seems intuitive, because the home page is the first thing you see when you enter the wonderful world of Facebook.

Other than that, the rest of the home page basically looks the same, with a few exceptions. The news feed is less cluttered and easier to read, especially with the new tabs where you can look solely at status updates, new photos, posted items, or a combination of everything, allowing for more customization for your personal stalking habits. Who doesn’t love that?

In the same spirit of customization, once you click over to the profile pages, there are tabs that separate the wall, personal information, photos and applications so you’re not bombarded with applications like “Zombie Wars,” “SuperPoke” and the enlightening “How Many Five-Year-Olds Can You Beat Up in a Fight?” (unless you want to be, of course).

Sure, the fact that your wall and your news feed are combined into one entity might irk some people, and that is understandable, but customization is the word of the day! Once again you are provided with tabs that separate “Posts from Others,” “Posts by User” and “All Posts,” so you can look at just your wall, just your mini-feed or both, depending on your preferences.

I hope it is clear by now that even though there are a few significant changes to Facebook, none are irreversible. The creators of Facebook have simply handed the reins over to their adoring public, allowing us to decide exactly how we each want to experience and use Facebook. In a few weeks, you won’t even remember what the old Facebook looked like. Besides, the fact that I can change my language to “English (pirate)” where the wall is a “plank,” videos are “bewitched portraits” and friends are “mateys” is reason enough to worship the new Facebook, and I suspect many others feel the same way. Ahoy, mateys!