Don't judge me by my teacups

I love watching, reading, or hearing things that are uplifting and inspiring.  There are great sources out there that do just that, however, overwhelmingly, the media presented is not uplifting or inspiring.  I've always found it so odd that Facebook is supposed to be a social media platform to share insights with friends and family and I've always tried to honor doing that in the most honest and real way possible; neither editing out all our hardships or concentrating on them, but being real, as real as one can be behind a computer or phone screen.  

I've had people call me and ask me to take this or that down from my personal FB page, which is ironic because it is (as a wise friend described it) like my living room walls.  The pictures I hang don't have to be your favorites, but they reflect me as a person, sometimes they are masterpieces, other times they just have a special meaning to me and might seem worthless to the casual observer.  But the person who knows me well would look at my collection of teacups from all different times in my life and know what they are, and a few (a special few) might admire the teacups just because they're different and want to get to know me better.  The point is, don't judge me by my teacups.  They are an amalgam of special times and people, personal and special to me.  

I think it's easy to fall into a pattern where (especially as women) we feel the need to "only concentrate on the positive" when it comes to social media.  I personally choose to share snapshots of my life, whether the tough times or the triumphant times (sometimes those are one in the same).  Maybe it's too real for people.  I love the inspiring stories and videos, but I also believe I connect with people over social media in order to help facilitate better "in person" relationships, not to avoid them.  

This video recently on my FB feed seemed very appropriate and describes how I feel about social media (or anti-social media as they case may be).  Our experiences with social media will vary greatly just like our life experiences do.  I hope each of us can live life to the fullest and make sure that we always love the one we're with and not love our screens...they won't love you back.