People are obsessed with other people’s lives. We’re always on the outside looking in. Tabloids are bad enough, but the internet is even worse. The way we use the internet has evolved so that it encourages this behaviour — we are prompted to be observers, not creators. Tumblr is a testament to this.

Sometimes it seems like 95% of the internet’s capacities are taken up with girls reblogging other people’s images, hundreds of them a day. Snapshots of beautiful moments. People in love, girls in great dresses, long nights full of revelry & the sunrise viewed from someone’s rooftop.

I appreciate photography as much as anyone else, but you have to draw the line somewhere. The whole thing makes me crazy simply because the pictures are all aspiration, & no activity. Baby girl, posting more pretty photos isn’t going to make your life any more magical or wonderful, I promise.

Do you want to know a secret?

The only reason your life doesn’t look or feel like a moment worth capturing on film is because you haven’t done anything to CREATE that.

A beautiful life requires work & effort!
It means NOT staying in your pyjamas in front of the computer all weekend.
It means getting in the shower, picking an outfit, choosing an activity & actually putting yourself out there.
It means calling your friends to invite them out.
It means staying in touch with your friends & making the effort so that you actually HAVE friends to do things with!
It means striking up conversation with people who may look weird or be different to you.
It means doing things you’re not totally sure of, heart pounding, & heebie-jeebies creeping up the back of your skull.

I know that sometimes, staying in & watching a movie is more tempting. But I also know that when we finally extricate ourselves from our nests, we feel so much better about ourselves, & life in general!

There are no excuses. Even the smallest town can be a wonder; it’s all about perspective.

Don’t live your life vicariously through the internet. Those anonymous girls you worship? They could just as easily be you. Wouldn’t you prefer to be the person in the photo, instead of the person looking at it?

Do something wonderful this week. Surprise the people around you. Live dangerously. Take a risk. Amaze yourself.

Photo by Lissy Laricchia.