There is this app called Timehop, which connects to your social media accounts and shows you things you posted each day in years past. When looking at the app, I’m reminded of good times I’ve had, funny jokes my friends and I made on the internet, and suddenly, I feel the need to say, DEAR GOD I AM SO SORRY FOR BEING SO ANNOYING FROM 15 TO 18.
Honestly. For anyone that was Facebook friends with me during this time, (I did not get Twitter until I was a cool twenty year old…even though I am still sometimes embarrassed by things I write) thank you for putting up with these blah social media posts. I would right such gold for statuses as “is good” or “cannot wait for this weekend. geez.” or “waitin’.” (I also didn’t use correct capitalization or grammar, because THAT’S NOT COOL, MOM.) What was I thinking? (More or less, not thinking. I was also a hormonal teen angst, so at least I had a valid excuse for being incredibly attention-seeking and ridiculous?)
Then I realized something—everyone has posted something stupid on social media at one time or another. To quote George Santayana, “Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” I believe that through studying our own social media "history", we can become better users of social media.
We used to cut people down and it created a fight? Cut it out. We used to post passive-aggressive statuses/tweets about our ex? Aggressively stop doing that. We used to post things we would never tell a stranger in a million years about ourselves, yet feel comfortable telling the world for some reason (seriously anyone can read whatever you write if they want to bad enough)? Tell a best friend instead. We used to desperately seek attention? Go outside in desperation of a enormous need to get away from social media, and become more comfortable with one's self.
I believe that if EVERYONE got Timehop, I would no longer feel the urge to unfriend countless people on Facebook every time I got on it, and this world would be a much happier and hopeful place—because we would realize how stupid we've been in the past—and we need to become older and wiser in our years of social media use.
PSA—I don't work for Timehop and they didn't pay me to write this. But seriously, get it, and become a better user of social media. This world needs better statuses, tweets, and less selfies.
P.S. — If you are from Timehop, reading this and love this, and want to give me a t-shirt/sum of money/something awesome, I would accept.