THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN INSTAGRAM AND REAL LIFE
Two weeks ago I received an email from an old friend of mine which began with the following sentence: “Hey Liesbeth! Long time no see! How’s everything? Though from what I see, it looks like you have a pretty wonderful life.” At the time of reading this I was curled up in my bed, completely broken after only 3 hours sleep from being up all night mulling over the heavy things weighing me down. So a wonderful life, was something that I was just not feeling. We arranged to have coffee and I asked why she had said such a thing, where upon she answered that she followed me on Instagram and of course saw all the nice and pretty things roll by in her feed. Well sure, but wait up! That is my Instagram-life, that is quite far the real life?
Later I took a moment to scroll through my account and indeed, if you see it all pass by it sure looks like a hell of a time. And I put a lot of time into it too. Spending hours taking the right photograph and sometimes I even have a huge “Insta-drift” and then whack up a picture from a month ago. My Instagram addiction is running totally out of control and if a picture is not doing well (not reaching my required ‘like’-standard) then after a couple of days I take that thing down. So yes, if you never speak to me, based on my Instagram account you could think that I’m floating through life.
But that is just not so. Absolutely not. A few months ago there was a pretty nasty incident I’m still trying to grapple with, but this is not going up on social media. However I did Instagram a picture from the department store with the text “having a pretty crappy (somethings just need to be said) day today, so thank god for retail therapy.” Within half an hour I had three followers less and never has a picture of mine received so few likes. People don’t want to see misfortune and misery, that was clear. So within three days I took that picture off and my account returned once more to an accumulation of filtered highlights.
To be honest, I do this too whenever I meet someone in “real life”. I’m often surprised when I hear what is really happening in his or her life “because I see all the happy times rolling by”. Another is relationships. Couples with all their lovey dovey discussions, photos and corn laden comments. Is their relationship so sunny and bright? We all have a cross to bear, but with some people you just don’t see it. This can be very confusing. Confusing and misleading because as happy as they are, we are not. Is everything okay with us? It is ridiculous that all this love and happiness from other people can make us doubt the situations of our own lives.
My life is really quite delicious, but believe me when I say that there are plenty of things that are also completely horrid. Maybe Instagram is also a kind of deception, a place where everything is rosy. Where the cappuccinos are always decorated with a heart, macaroons are the perfect shade of pastel, where the sun always shines and a palm tree is never too far away. And all of that is sometimes actually quite wonderful, even though it may not always be true.
