It is almost impossible to deny that millennials are obsessed with documenting everything. We think that something funny we see at Target, or a friend’s drunken rant at a party, or just a quick selfie must be shared with the world. Can you prove you were really within arm’s reach of Beyonce if you didn’t take a picture? It’s everywhere, from screenshots to Snapchats, one could see it as sharing joy or laughter with others. But in all sincerity, most Facebook posts or Snapchat stories are just a way to say, “Look at all the amazing and fun things I do, I am cool, and don’t you just wish you were me?”
I don’t say this in a patronizing way. Look at my camera roll and there are thousands of pictures, most of which are from my freshman year of college. That is until earlier this week when I broke my phone and many of my pictures and videos were deleted. When I told my dad I was upset about it, all he said to me was that I had to trust myself to remember things and not some device. Sometimes his hippie thoughts or comments just go over my head, but this one resonated with me. I thought of how disheartening it is to look around at concerts and see people not putting their hands in the air jamming to the beat of the music, but holding their phones up and watching this live artist through their iPhone screens. Or what about when you go out to eat and someone at the table says “STOP, don’t touch the food, I need to Instagram it first.” Whatever happened to living in the moment? Or just keeping some part of your life to yourself, and not displaying everything to the public?
I don’t like making grandiose statements but my first year of college has been one of the best years of my mere 19 years of life. I moved to a new city, met wonderful and unique people, and had a range of experiences, both intellectually stimulating as well as hilarious and ridiculous. I know that I am not the only one who feels this way and these feelings apply to many college students. So keeping all of that in mind, does it really matter if your high school nemesis or that dude you had a crush on years ago knows that you are having a fun time in college? Moreover, is it really that important for the world to know every detail of someone’s internship on Capitol Hill because they tweet about it every second? Or for everyone to see on their newsfeed that someone is “soooo fadeddd #faded”? Sure we could just delete these people from our social media sites, but what was their point to begin with? So many teens are obsessed with representing themselves as cool or different on social media. But fussing over your Instagram post’s caption isn’t going to make people like you more. We think others are watching and judging every detail of our lives, when really people are consumed by their own lives.
If there’s one thing I can recommend to incoming college freshmen, it’s to relish every second because everything goes by very quickly. Truly appreciate every moment. From the times you have to pull an all-nighter on the silent floor of the library, to when you have never felt so happy and carefree. Sure those pictures and videos will be awesome to look at in the future, but if you have the option of just looking around at the craziness that is going down at a party during welcome week instead of taking pictures with some girls you just met that you will probably never see again, go for the first option. Take those embarrassing and funny videos with your friends, but remember that fully experiencing everything firsthand is much more valuable and memorable in the long run. Put your screen down, maybe leave your phone at home for a night, and look up.