Scrolling down my Facebook feed, I saw this gorgeous picture my friend posted with the caption – The View from Our Villa in Sri Lanka.
I’ll admit that I felt like making a trip to Sri Lanka at that sight. I got a serious case of travel-envy at that moment which passed very quickly, pictures on social media tend to generate only fleeting emotions on my part which is a blessing else FIRE would be a muchhhh longer journey!
Just last week, we had dinner with said friend and her husband and asked about her trip.
“OMG, it was so horrible! Everything was terrible and I nearly died!”
Huhhh? Wait a minute, back up there. What happened?
So turns out the food was not to her liking and always served cold. The driver almost never stopped to let them have lunch her accommodation was terrible with cockroaches throwing parties. Her driver almost drove off the ledge in the heavy rain as they drove down a hill. She had to get out of the car in heavy rain to push the car which was stuck in a ditch. She had to hail other cars down to help fix her car as her driver sat in the car.
It was endless! Sounds like all the makings of a pretty rotten trip…….. yet her only post on Facebook was that gorgeous picture.
Social media is truly just a snippet. What is shared is the story that the person wants to tell. I want to tell the world that I had an amazing trip to Sri Lanka, I walked away from my trip feeling calm and relaxed. Connected to my soul. The actual story, that she hated her trip, is only to be shared with the closer friends who ask her in person. Almost Orwellian, where the past is destructed and what is in print are selected truths / contorted. [One day, said friend is going to read this post, to future-her I say – I luvyaaa! Not picking you out, we all do it to some degree but it’s a great recent example!]
Social media brings out our inner narcissist. Since when was being a narcissist cool anyway? People post pictures of themselves and caption it – narcissist much? Just like ‘people watching’. When did that become a legit hobby anyway? In my recent years of accepting minimal bullshit in my life, I have been quite trigger happy with the ‘unfriend’ button, haha! Anyway, I digress once again, I was alluding to the fact that it isn’t uncommon to see constant posts about grand romantic gestures, endless adventures, amazing corporate perks and that might lead a person to feel inadequate about their life. Welcome to #societalpressures. It would be all to easy to think everyone has a marvelous life but yourself but also naive to think that life is all that, all the time!
That’s why when there are revelations about the Hollywood stars, it sparks so much of interest and takes us by surprise. Look at this picture, perfect looking couple. They got it all, eh? #Instaworthy
Bam! He beats her. Chris Brown and Ri-ri – who wouldn’t have known if that famous picture didn’t leak? (I refuse to have that picture on our blog hence the link, I am deliberate on filling this space with feel good imagery) It may not be far off to then think, perhaps they did have arguments every now and again? It wasn’t just all great times? Am speculating here which I try not to indulge except to illustrate that life is more than what a picture conveys, even though it apparently says a thousand words 😉
The point is to have a pinch of salt handy 😀 I’m having a gallant time with sayings in this post! It would not serve a person well to trust everything they see wholeheartedly. There are undertones and textures that one can’t possibly know or appreciate from just a picture. There’s a saying that goes – Believe nothing you hear and only half of what you see. The positive twist can come from accepting that social media is good for inspiration but not comparisons. When we draw that line, then we can feel inspired by the picture, the moment and the spirit of the message without falling into a self-shaming circus (worse yet, shaming our significant other!). The minute you start feeling any negative emotions, you need a social media detox and a good shake to remember that these social shares are embellishments at best, a narcissist’s playground.
Author: Ms.K
Ms.K is everything that Mr.C is, without the natural interest in investing and company financials! The activity planner for the family, the driver of random ideas and soon to be ‘retiring’ in to full time motherhood – Ms.K has no idea what she’s in for but remains super excited!