I'm going to try to not pull the "life was better when I was growing up" card but... it was. Life felt so much simpler. Social media did not carry the heavy burden on people like it does today. Everything was so raw, unedited, and genuine. And yeah, I look back and cringe at some of the things I did but at the end of the day, at least that was real.
We live in a world now that is so eaten up by other people's thoughts and judgments that we have become content in living life for the "like". What happened to us? Did we forget how beautiful the candid moments truly are?
I will be the first to admit that I was bad about what I would post out of fear of what others would think.
"What if someone zooms in and sees this?"
"Will it look like I copied so and so?"
"Can you tell I have a roll when I am sitting?" "The lighting makes me look pale, is that okay?"
"My cheeks look bigger with the way I am smiling... I just won't post it."
I am a HUGE fan of social media. I love being able to share moments with those we choose to in a snap. I adore being able to keep up with people that I haven't seen in years. I am an advocate for posting (smartly, that is) when you have something you want to share. And we USED to do just that... but as a society we have back tracked.
I told myself that age 24 was going to be my "no" year. I was going to start declining offers that did not entice me or I was going to start turning down plans when I was beginning to feel too stressed out. And if I am being honest, I would say I have done a fairly good job at it.
I still have a few months left of 24 and I want to continue to work on that but I also want to emphasize the beauty of life and letting it be candid. I have never been one to love filters because it does just that, it filters what is actually happening and it takes something from being raw to being manufactured. I am done using them. I am done posting only after I have analyzed the photo the point of tearing my own self down. I am done worrying about if my life will ruin my "aesthetic."
Instead, I am making my authentic life my aesthetic... starting now. (: