What is a “Facebook photo life?
Facebook photo lives are unrealistic, yet so many of us strive to obtain them. So, what is a “Facebook photo life?”
By now many of us have come to understand that magazine covers, ads, billboards, the “click bait” material online, and so much more; are not just a picture of an individual holding a product. They are societies expectation of what is beautiful/handsome that has been digitally enhanced after the work of professional make-up artists and hair stylists and taken by a professional photographer. This leads people to desperately seek to obtain a form of beauty that is not obtainable which can cause low self-esteem, depression, and much more. Unfortunately, we took this phenomenon and added a new layer in our own social media.
What picture do you have on your social accounts? Why did you choose it? Odds are your answers are the same as others. We chose the best picture we had of ourselves or our family, so as a person scrolls through with the lives of others on full display, we are inundated with others' “best picture.” Not only do we see that person’s best picture, the vacations we can’t afford and the weddings that we maybe have not had, but also what people choose to say about it. Beyond the meme’s and funny fails that are shared are other's thoughts and feelings. Thoughts that are often reflecting the more positive side of a great weekend, “happy birthday to the most perfect wife ever!”, and I’m sure you can think of your own.
Is your life perfect? Neither is theirs. There is a quote that “everyone is fighting a battle you know nothing about.” I’d tell you the author but as I search, I am finding everyone from Plato to Robin Williams. It does not really matter who said it though, as long as it rings true to you. People don’t look like the individuals we see in the advertisements that flood our lives, nor is everyone’s life as perfect as it seems through our digital screens.
Within the small social circle of women in my life, I know eight women who have had miscarriages during their pregnancies, two of which a funeral was performed due to how late in development this occurred. It was clear how devastated and alone each one of them felt. Furthermore, I know three women who do not identify as lesbian but have chosen to date girls because the men in their lives have been that awful. We do not post this, nor do we post the dirty dishes in the sink, messy rooms, our procrastination, or lack of motivation.
As we continue to do this, we separate ourselves from one-another more while we live in a world that claims to be more connected than ever. Historically we lived in groups and depended on each other for mere survival, and as we have evolved, we developed the technology to sustain an independence, but what have we lost? We need one day for each person to post that no makeup first out of bed picture, or the messy room we haven’t gotten to yet, or the pile of dishes in the sink. To post a heartbreak that has occurred in your life because the truth is you are not the first to experience it, nor the last, and someone out there needs to know that they too are not alone.
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