If a tree falls in the woods and no one is around to hear it, does it still make a sound? Yes. Sound is a mechanical wave- a phenomenon of physics. Mother Nature still speaks even if no one is around to hear her. And contrary to prevailing opinion, the event still happened even if it wasn’t posted on Instagram.
I know nearly nothing about physics or Instagram. But I’m arguably more interested in the former than the latter which bespeaks a deep indifference to Instagram. I only “like” people in person. I’m not a “follower”, but a recent WSJ article on travelers booking “Instagram tours” got my attention. Apparently one can hire a professional photographer to get the best possible vacation picture to post, all in the name of “likes”.
The quote from a millennial that said it all: “If a trip isn’t on my Instagram, it probably didn’t happen.” Making it happen means traveling heavy. For the star of the post- hair stuff, makeup, and wardrobe changes. For the photographer- lots of lighting paraphernalia, cameras and drones for aerial shots.
Perish the lowly “selfie”.
It makes one question whether the exotic location or the natural and manmade wonders even matters if they’re just a backdrop for a vanity shot. Long ago, before the Internet was invented, we stopped at a kitschy road-side attraction somewhere in Florida where you could pay to have your picture taken holding a baby gator with his snout firmly sealed with duct tape. We took the bait. The main memory isn’t our children holding the poor gator. It’s of another pre-school girl with full makeup and coiffed hair, in her sparkly dress, striking a pageant-worthy pose with the gator. Her parents were snapping pictures like paparazzi. A millennial in the making.
Vanity posing on vacations or elsewhere- maybe missing the forest for the trees? I do like the Polaroid (the original insta) pictures of my gator holders and honestly felt a little hesitant about putting them in even limited circulation. Glamour shots they are not, so I gave myself a pass.
Remember that better can be the enemy of the good. Enjoy the sights and the sounds without worrying too much about your followers.