Well, it’s been a while!
I’ve been on little break from online sharing for the past few weeks, and let me tell you…it has been so refreshing. So good for my soul! The world is full of noise, and social media is probably one of the loudest, busiest forms of that noise for me…and to just let it go for a season of quiet and introspection was just so revitalizing to my mind and heart. I missed it in some ways, and yet I didn’t. I mean, there is a measure of community and connection that happens in these online, digital spaces…but yet what I’ve seen so much clearer in these past few weeks of not engaging in social media is that while yes, it’s a form of community, it’s just not community. It’s a form of friendship yes, but it’s just not friendship. True community and true friendship and true connection happens in the time spent with another, and when an online space creates distraction or tries to be a replacement for the actual relationships in my life, then that’s just foolish.
In the past few weeks, I’ve spent more time engaging with my husband and watching my little girl do all her funny things while she plays and read more books and spent more time in quietness and felt so much more fully present than I have in a long time. I wasn’t tempted to pick up my phone when something fun or cute was happening…I was just there, fully, present, engaged. I realized that I don’t need to share the sweet, beautiful moments of my life and that I rather need to just live them and enjoy them and to store them in my own heart.
Now all that to say, I’m not stepping away from social media…because like I said, it is a form of friendship, connection, and community. And I like it. I’ve missed seeing what my friends are doing and sharing…while yet also relishing just seeing and doing my own life. I’ve missed being inspired by other people’s creativity and life…while yet also savoring feeling the freedom from the temptations of comparison and competition. I’ve missed having an outlet for photos and thoughts…while yet also really enjoying the time spent just not sharing anything. So it’s a juxtaposition, and in many ways I’m still trying to figure it all out and formulate my own rules of balance in it. But for now, I’m dipping my toes back into blogging and sharing some things again on Instagram and even Snapchat (still not sure how I feel about that one and basically have no idea what i’m doing there, hehe).
Some things to remember about social media::
- The majority of what you see from online sharing (especially Instagram) is a curated version of someone’s life. When you curate something, it means you pull together, sift through, and select for presentation. Not everyone curates or uses their social media for an artistic outlet, but just remember that the majority of what is shared is the highlight reel and most people only share the photo with the best lighting/angles/setup. I curate my Instagram feed because for me it is an artistic outlet for pretty things and pretty photos that I like…but just remember that! I curate.
- No one has the perfect life. No one! Even that gorgeous blogger with a million followers and all the prettiest things has sinks full of dishes and laundry piles and bad hair days like the rest of us. Just because someone doesn’t share something (like dirty kitchens/frizzy hair/fussing children) doesn’t mean it’s not there. I don’t share photos of my dirty corners because I don’t find that artistic or beautiful, but trust me, they are there.
- Do not compare, do not compare, do not compare. Just don’t compare.
- It’s meant to be a form of friendship, but never at the expense of missing a connection with your husband or children or friends. You don’t have to pull the phone camera out at every special moment.
- Sometimes the best memories are the ones that are just captured in your mind and heart.
- But also, it can be right and good to share your life and inspiration with others. Your life and your heart and your creativity can bless others!
What about you: where do you find yourself in sharing life on social media, and how do you balance it?
I’d love to hear your thoughts!
This is so good + so true, Alicia! You said really well some things that I have been pondering fir a long while. Thanks for your honesty!
Allison
Thanks for reading, Allison. 🙂
Such true words! This is something I struggle with. Some days it seems like such a good thing and some days I want to delete my social media accounts. I needed to hear this.
I have those days too with the itch and temptation to just delete away those online accounts, but I guess my feelings right now are more like, you know, this is just our modern day world and I need to learn to manage these things in my own heart instead of just running away from them. Although not engaging for a season was incredibly wonderful too. 😉
What you said – it’s so true and so good! I’m glad you had a refreshing time away from social media. But I must say, I’m happy that you’re back! 🙂
It’s good to be back. 😀
Amen on not pulling the camera out for every special occasion! When my 6 year old girl was little and I would get her ready to leave for church or etc, I can still just see her running down the hallway to go show her daddy her curls and pretty dress, I never got a real video of it but it’s a moment I treasure in my heart!
I love that you have that beautiful memory simply stored in your heart. I realized that for me too many I was actually MISSING the beautiful moment by trying to capture it! It’s a delicate balance, because it’s so fun to have photos of those sweet, cute moments…but some of those things just need to be stored in our own hearts.
Welcome back, Alicia! I so get all of this. I often have to tell myself to put my phone down and just sit down with Little M and play with him, no distractions, just focus and pay attention on what’s happening in the moment. It’s sad, really. And hard to find a balance, always. Social media is my day job, so there’s really no escaping it for me, and I’ve actually found that after having a kid and not having the time I once had to take photos and write and cook, platforms like Instagram and Snapchat have become my outlets for creativity and collecting small moments. Micro-blogging, if you will, and I need that. So I’m still embracing it, and having fun with it, but yes, it’s so important to just pause and enjoy the moment and hold it in your heart rather than your phone. 🙂
Instagram and Snapchat are such fun outlets for creativity, for sure! And I think each of us will find our “balance” in different ways…a break from it all was good for a while, but it iS fun to be back online. 😉