Recently, it seems that I cannot go anywhere without witnessing someone posting whatever it is they happen to be doing to their social media accounts. From taking my dog for a walk in the dog park to going for coffee, or even just walking down the streets of Victoria on a sunny day, it seems like everywhere I look someone is pulling out their phone to capture a rather banal moment.
At first, this phenomenon seemed silly to me. Do we really need to make an Instagram story about every latte we’ve ever drunk or photograph our pets anytime they look remotely cute? On the one hand, social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook pressure us into feeling like our lives aren’t perfect if we don’t have anything interesting to show the world. Anytime we do anything we feel an impulsive need to broadcast to our followers that we do indeed lead interesting lives. This mindset of “See? I’m cool, look at me in this restaurant.” is something that I have always been wary of.
However, as I began to think more about this subject, I realized that maybe Instagram and other social media tools have helped us to recognize the beauty in everyday life. By showing off what would otherwise be considered pretty mundane activities, maybe we have forced ourselves to recognize that there is something to be cherished in every picture of latte art. Small moments that we might have taken for granted before, like taking the dog for a walk, can suddenly be appreciated in a meaningful way.
I still don’t think we need to document every moment of our lives on our social media accounts, but I do appreciate how social media has helped us to see something special within the monotony of everyday life.