In a time when the world seems to be burning, do we share our daily outfits, that aesthetic coffee and cake picture, or dream vacation clicks? It’s a tough spot to be in
Go to a gallery, have a cup of coffee with a friend, drink wine as you watch your comfort show, or get into a cosy blanket as you listen to some mellow music. And don’t go online for a few days. Representation Illustration/istock
The Golden Globes were held this week, and actor Mark Ruffalo wore a “Be Good” pin to honour the memory of Renee Good, who was fatally shot by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) last week. On the red carpet, he told a journalist, “As much as I love all this, I don’t know if I can pretend like this crazy stuff isn’t happening.”
That’s exactly how many of us must be feeling on social media, where we have a front seat to the best and worst of the world. We can hear concerts and connect with artistes we love, watch art, and read beautiful prose, get inspired and visit a country hundreds of kilometres away, but we can also watch people being killed, countries being burnt, and babies bearing the brunt of war.
So, the question arises: Can you post a story about the protests in Iran, following it up with a picture of your breakfast? Can you post about children being killed, and then share your opinion on what Priyanka Chopra Jonas wore to an award show? Can you share your joy, in the face of so much despair in the world? Is that terribly inconsiderate of you, or is it just life that goes on, no matter what?
It’s a known fact now that doomscrolling leads to a stress response, releasing cortisol, activating the amygdala (fear centre), and making you hypervigilant and anxious. So what can help reverse that, or at least slow it down? What can lead to you feeling some semblance of normalcy in this getting-crazier-by-the minute week? I would think it’s if you have enough beauty, art, culture, writing, and people just being people.
So, according to me, maybe this is exactly the right time to post, but post with discretion, post with some sort of internal editing, post with some love and affection. In these times, if you can eat breakfast, go for a workout, meet your friends, go on a vacation, all the while doing a job to earn that salary — it’s all commendable. And maybe sharing those details will help others who are struggling to make sense of it all, and it will push them to get out of bed. Maybe sharing how you are struggling every second, even as you try to hold yourself together, can help someone be brave enough to do the same.
If you are an artist of any kind, this is surely the time to create and share. Hearing you sing, watching you dance, reading something you wrote may connect with someone and their grief. It may heal someone. It may help people understand why they are feeling what they are feeling. As Meryl Streep once famously said, “Take your broken heart, make it into art”. Your art is needed the most at this time.
But, if this is not working for you, this could be the time you did all these things in an analogue world — go to a gallery, have a cup of coffee with a friend, drink wine as you watch your comfort show, or get into a cosy blanket as you listen to some mellow music. And don’t go online for a few days. Read a newspaper, get the basic news, but don’t make the gloom and doom a running soundtrack for your life. This could be the time you take a break, to make sure your sanity stays intact. This doesn’t mean you don’t care. It just means you are dealing the best way you can. May we all survive this craziness.
See you next week.
Ranting and raving about all that’s trending on social media, Aastha Atray Banan is an author, creator, podcaster, and the Editor of your favourite weekend read, Sunday mid-day. She posts at @aasthaatray on Instagram.
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The views expressed in this column are the individual’s and don’t represent those of the paper.
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