Anyone else feel this way? Here’s an example that made me think of this line:
I’ve shared before that for most of my life I haven’t loved celebrating my own b-days. That it’s been a reminder of getting a yr older, & time passing. W/ that said, yesterday I shared on fbook that my grandma “Nana Hannah” had turned “Wayne Gretzky” yrs old. She never likes us revealing the actual # – so that was the most descriptive I could be w/o breaking rules.
I don’t ever share bdays of fam members on SM. But here was my rationale: she doesn’t use it…so she’s gonna hear only on the phone from friends/fam…& she’s staying w my parents, so – any nice notes we get, my mom can read them to her, & she’ll feel that much more love on a day that’s a pretty special one. Sure enough, sharing her pic (& age indirectly 😉 some heart-felt notes poured in. Making her happy, made me feel happy.
Ok, that’s a very unique example – for 1, its fam…& most ppl enjoy when fam is happy, & 2, it was a big moment in her life, to reach that #. But what abt how we feel when we see “others” – appearing happy online & in person? How does it make us feel?
I bring this up bc in the age of SM, we hear so much abt the negative impacts of ppl sharing only their “best life.” The cars, the vacations, the games attended, etc. I’ll agree that stuff can get old at times. But what abt seeing others being genuinely happy?
When others share things like the birth of a child, a smiling pic of the whole fam, a job promotion, an award for achievement, our inner dialogue can (simplifying here) go 1 of 2 ways: 1) jealousy for what they have, which we do not, 2) shared happiness for what they DO have, bc even if it’s a humble brag, you can tell it’s something they truly find joy in.
I get it…some folks go over the top w shares & post every time they go out to eat. Not talking abt those. But, I do think if we take a step back & consider our friends happiness in what they share – online & in person – & we drop comparisons, WE can get so much joy out of THEIR happiness. When we do that, everyone’s spirit gets lifted.