Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Don’t Let ‘Em Fool You (& some song lyrics)


A lot of exciting things have been happening in my life lately. Book signings. Just read a great write-up in the local paper about me entitled, “The Sweet Taste of Success.” Reviews for both of my books are strong. My husband and I are about to celebrate our fifteenth anniversary. My girls are back in school and I’m working hard on another story I can’t wait to share with you. I post some of this on social media. And some day-to-day happenings I keep to myself. To stroke and play with like a soft little bunny.
When I thought about what I wanted to blog about today my mind kept snagging on the word image. Particularly image on Facebook.
Life has a tendency to appear quite rosy on Facebook. For you. For me. For all of us. It’s only natural we want to put our best out there, but I wanted to share in this post how life isn’t a status update. It isn’t the best picture of twenty. It’s more than just the images we put out there of us when we’re in public or laughing with friends.
Life is a mixed bag. And while I respect that it’s wise not to dump our emotional baggage online at anyone who will click it open, I also think it’s good to remind ourselves that life isn’t a snapshot on Facebook. Social media is only a glimpse, and a glimpse we choose to share at that.
So in light of what I just wrote, I’m going to be candid. There’s a lot more going on in my life than book signings and articles that dub me a success. I often fight feelings of failure. I grieve friendships and find myself singing the following Bob Marley lyrics every so often. “Good friends we have. Good friends we’ve lost along the way.” Even though we have an adorable new pup, I still miss our old dog a lot. I get sad about family members battling sicknesses. I get frustrated with middle school girls who act rude. I have trouble acting normal when I’m nervous (nod to Counting Crows lyrics).
“And I’m gonna be forty.” (In a little over a year, but still Meg Ryan understands.)
So I write all this to remind you…
We’re in this together, people. And it’s never as real as it seems online. Don’t let ‘em fool you. (Hey, I do believe that’s Bob, too.)
 
 

9 comments:

  1. I so agree with this. Facebook is certainly not the place for our real life story. :-)

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    1. I'm thinking about what you wrote and how you wrote it. I hope aspects of my real life/the real me come out wherever I am. But it often feels like watching a pony parade on FB. Everyone showcasing. I just think it's important to remember that. Thanks for commenting, Clella!

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  2. What a beautifully written post! Completely agree about Facebook-- oftentimes, all that we see of most people is only a sliver and we (at least, I) tend to compare my entire life to a small aspect of someone else's. Sounds like you've got a lot of awesome stuff going on! Congrats on your anniversary and can't wait to read more of your writing!

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    1. AMS, Yep, I catch myself comparing a lot, too. Then I remember posts like this and I sort of have to take it into account b/c I wrote it. ;-) Thanks for the encouraging comment.

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