The Internet is definitely the greatest piece of technology we have. Instead of flipping through an encyclopedia for hours to find something out, you can just Google it and learn something new within seconds. Long-distance friendships have become more maintainable with social media making people just a click and a Skype call away, instead of having to wait weeks to get a letter back. Life has become easier from Generation X, to Y and to Z, but as technology has become a bigger part of everyday lives, it has also began to brainwash future generations into becoming the most conceited we've ever been.
What I'm talking about is social media. Kids today are so glued to their screens, it's as if we are living in a virtual reality instead of the present. Everything nowadays is documented, and the phrase, "If you didn't take a picture, did it actually happen?" has become a literal proclamation. People go on their outings and instead of absorbing their surroundings and enjoying the culture around them, they prioritize snapping the perfect picture of themselves against the scenery behind their backs. We are a generation that lives for posts going viral and getting the most likes.
One of my pet peeves is when someone sends me a multitude of photos of themselves from their day and asks which one I think they should post. It is utterly narcissistic. Why does it matter which one I think you look best in? Why can't you decide on your own, and why does my validation matter so much? People use their accounts to promote themselves and a certain image they want others to perceive of them. Social media isn't even social anymore. It should be called vain media.
I admit that I have been guilty of freaking out over social media too. I would stress out over posts until one day when I asked myself why I cared so much. It really doesn't matter. It's just a photo on a screen, and the number of likes beneath it has no significant meaning other than the fact that it is the number of people who went out of their way to double tap their screen.
Of course, I'm not saying everyone should delete their accounts or stop posting photos at all. What I'm trying to urge is that as a society, we should start focusing more on posting as a way to document memories, instead of posting as a way to document ourselves. Who cares if people are going to like it or not? Who cares if you post more than one photo a day? Who cares if people don't follow you back? What matters is the personal memory behind the photo and sharing that memory with friends, family and our future selves to look back on.
