I had lunch with a friend I hadn't seen for a while. After 2 hours of greatness, we said
our goodbyes and went our separate ways. Almost immediately I reached
for my BB and I put up a status update: “Thanks for lunch, had a gr8 time *bbm
kiss*” I did this, even though I had already told her what
a wonderful time I had just minutes before. I was surprised at the
incessant need I seem to have to share every great moment with everyone. It
turns out I am not the only one with this affliction; minutes after my
departure my friend also put a bbm update about lunch. LOL.
On a daily basis I subject my friends on BBM with daily updates of
my life from a great cup of coffee to a the horrible Jo'burg traffic, most
times accompanied by photos. Where is this need to journal and share mundane
details of our lives with everyone coming from? My need to document my life
began in high school when I started keeping a journal. I soon realized in
Varsity that if something is private, do not plaster it on a book that you
leave unlocked in a room shared by 3 girls. So I dumped dear diary and kept my
feelings to myself.
Then came social media; this is a different kind of
documenting. This is almost like writing an article about an hour or two of
your life to be viewed by all 300 of your “friends”; therefore everything said
is neat, cute and tied in a bow. If you are to post photos, only the ones that
resemble a younger Naomi will do. Social media is really there to show everyone
how fabulous your life is; Lunch at Tashas! Just bought a new pair of
shoes-(have got to kick this addiction); Beautiful flowers from BF-(look how great
my life is). It’s all superficial; it may all be real but our lives are not
an episode of sex and the city all the time. Truth is no one wants to put
something real on a social network; no one shares the pain of a cheating
boyfriend, or the shame of sinking into debt or what an ill advised plan it was
to have 4 kids.
I’m not bothered by all the sharing whether factual or fiction.
When something great happens sometimes you just want confirmation; you want
someone else to say “Wow that is wonderful!” What we put on these updates is
reflections of what we wish our lives were; what we are striving for. Lots of
shopping, a great relationship with God, a perfect partner who surprises us
with weekends away and cute lunches drinking cocktails with great friends.
Maybe if we pretend long enough, one day we will have all these things... in
that order. Good luck with that!
