Once upon a time people went to concerts to enjoy live music, parties to celebrate life's milestones and vacations to relax. This was a time before Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Vine and Snapchat.
Unfortunately this once upon a time no longer exists. The question, "if a tree falls in the forest but no one is there to hear it, did it really make a sound?", goes for social media accounts today. The 2014 version of this question is: If a girl goes to a Luke Bryan concert, but doesn't record every song for her Snapchat story, did she really go?
In today's society she didn't go to that concert. It seems like our culture today can sometimes be more concerned with capturing every moment rather than living in the moment. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. Our children one day will be able to literally watch their parents grow up with the endless trail of social media we have left behind for them. If you focus on that idea, social media has many benefits that have enhanced our lives. But what effect does it have on how we experience life?
We often find ourselves so concerned with the appearance of things that we forget about the simple joys in life. Just because you didn't tweet about what you got for Christmas, Instagram your date night, or Facebook status your plans are tonight doesn't make it is any less exciting. Unfortunately we have been sucked into this idea that if our experiences are not recorded or documented somehow they are not significant.
We can sit in an empty room with our cell phone as long as that room has wifi and still feel connected to the world around us. Interaction with others includes liking their new Instagram picture or favoriting their last tweet. Even when we do get out we find ourselves less concerned with who we take pictures with, but rather more concerned with the best choice of filter for the photo.
I guess the irony here is that while the purpose of social networking is to bring people together by shared experiences we now find ourselves more disconnected to the world than ever before.
