Social media is an inevitable part of our world today. As much as I love the entertainment value and social connections it is able to provide, today I want to talk about something grave concerning social media.
When we choose to broadcast our lives to the internet, something mysterious happens. At first, we feel like we've expanded our reach; we feel like we've proven to others that our lives are somehow extraordinarily meaningful.
But then, the damage starts to take its toll. We feel ever more comfortable posting our thoughts on social media, and more hesitant to interact with our friends face-to-face. Instead of face-to-face greetings, we find ourselves mechanically sending streaks to everyone we know. Our friends become mere selfies, instead of real human beings. Is this where we are headed?
When I was in middle school, I remember creating an Instagram page because everyone else I knew had one. I wanted to join the trend like everyone else, and I mimicked the style of photos and captions that most people seemed to be posting. I became super wary of how many likes my photos got, how many followers I gained each day. That period of starting an Instagram page in middle school wouldn't be the last time I would try to gain a presence on social media, but it was when I began to understand the dangerous effects of broadcasting your life publicly.
I need not say much more on this topic, as I am sure anyone who has dabbled around in the world of social media (who hasn't?) is already familiar with the drawbacks of its double-edged sword. For as much reach as social media allows us to have in this world, if we don't watch ourselves and be wary of how much of ourselves we're really exposing to the world, then we're bound to be cut by its razor-sharp blade. And if worst comes to worst, just step back and take a break from it all. Something tells me that we'll all be fine if our feed goes unread for a while.
