"Ready Player One" and Social Media

 This week I read the wonderful book, "Ready Player One" by Ernest Cline. I also participated in a social media 10 day fast, as requested by the leader of the church I belong to. Now that I've finished the book and just got back onto social media, I realize how coincidental it was that I did these two things at the same time. I'll explain why.

First, you need to know what the book is about. "Ready Player One" is about a boy named Wade who lives in a futuristic version of Earth where they pretty much live their lives in a virtual reality called "The Oasis". Wade attends a virtual school, has virtual friends, and pretty much just plays games all day long in The Oasis. The book starts off with the man who created The Oasis dying and leaving clues in the virtual world for people to find the "Easter egg" he has left behind. When someone finds the Easter egg, they inherit his money and company. Naturally, Wade, a poor orphan, wants to find this so he can be rich, leave his crappy town, and never look back.

But the book is so much more than an orphan trying to become rich by playing a video game. It's about corrupt companies trying to make money off of people's joys in life. It's about how knowing someone and becoming their friend, loving them, isn't based on what a person looks like but about how they are as a person, how they think, act, and treat people. It's about how sometimes we do need a break from reality, but in the end reality is all we have so we have to make the most of it, which is how this book ties in to my recent social media fast.

I'm a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Last weekend, we had what is called "General Conference". We have two weekends a year, five two hour sessions where we get to hear our Prophet, his apostles, and other general authorities in our church speak to us. On one particular session, President Nelson, our Prophet, asked the ladies of the church to do a ten day social media fast. I decided to take his challenge because I personally felt that I had become too dependent on my social media. I was constantly checking Instagram and Facebook to see who had checked my story, if a certain person has posted something, and what meme was becoming popular. So ten days ago, I deleted my apps. Every time I touched my phone this week, my fingers automatically searched for those apps, even though I knew in my head that they were not there.

 This morning I redownloaded the apps. As I was cooking my breakfast, I scrolled through my Instagram, noticing that I didn't really care about a lot of things. During lunch I scrolled through my Facebook, realizing the same thing. I  mean, I love my friends and love seeing what everyone is doing with their lives, but I feel like I didn't need to see these things like I felt like I needed to before. But I know if I continue looking at these apps, I'll get addicted again, feel like I need to look and see if someone posted something even though I checked literally 40 seconds ago.

Today while I was on my walk, listening to "Ready Player One", there was a line that caught my attention that really made me think about my social media usage: "as terrifying and painful as reality can be, it's also the only place where you can find true happiness. Because reality is real." Occasionally people post about the terrifying and the painful things that happen to them, but usually they only post about the good that is happening to them.  Which is great, I'm glad good things are happening. But I feel like we don't enjoy the moments we post about as much as we should because we might just be doing it to post about it. We crave the "likes" our post with get. We think those will make us happy. And it kind of does. It makes us feel good, feel liked, but it only lasts for a little bit, which is why we post again, again, and again. We need to look at what really makes us happy and live in those moments. I feel like I've been able to do a lot more since I deleted my apps this week. I have most of my Christmas shopping done, and it's not even November!

I don't want to give social media up entirely because this is what today's world is. It is a way to keep in touch with those that live miles away as well as those who live next door. So to help myself live in those moments more, while still having social media, I have personally decided to limit usage with a cool new tool on my phone. The new iPhone update shows screen time usage every week, which apps someone has used, and for how long. When you go into the new app, you can click on each social app and set a limit each day for however long you want. Since I haven't done it before, I'm assuming the app will just kick you out once your limit is up, thus making it so you cannot go on again until the next day. I just put a 30 minute time limit on each of my apps because I feel like that is a good amount of time for me to catch up on my friend's lives without wasting too much time, especially now that I've unfollowed a ton of accounts that I don't need in my life.

I'm not trying to say you need to give up social media or anything. I really believe that social media is great, we just need to be more aware of our usage of it. It's a  very personal thing, and you do whatever you feel is right for you. I do suggest that you read this book though. It really is amazing. Fare warning, it does have some F bombs and can be a little crude at some points. I really did love the writing, the characters, and the world. It is very relatable to today's world, and I wouldn't be surprised if one day we have an "Oasis" of our own. Also it talks a ton about the 80's, so if you're into that, you will love it. Also if you would like to know more about the social media fast I participated in, here is the link to President Nelson's Talk.

If you made it this far (this post was longer than I expected it to be) thank you for reading! I'd love to hear your thoughts on social media and if you've read the book, I'd love to discuss that with you as well! You can reach me on Instagram or Facebook, I'll be sure to answer you in the thirty minutes I've given myself ;).

Depression and Lots of Rain Similes #seizetheawkward

There is something about rain that makes my heart feel at ease. I love the way rain sounds as it pitter-patters on the roof. I love when the thunder is far enough away that it sounds like a stomach growling from hunger. I love that you can smell rain before it has even begun to fall. I love how the cloudy days remind of walking down the road in London. I love the connection I feel with the world around me when it rains.

I'm writing this as it is raining outside, my window wide open. I've closed my eyes a few times now, just to listen to the different sounds it makes as it falls against the window, fence, roof, grass, and pavement. I could go stand outside and let it wash over me, but I just settle for breathing in deep and letting it cleanse my soul instead. I know it's crazy, but I feel like it actually does clean my soul, in a way.

I guess it is not as much as a cleansing as a connection. This last weekend I was pretty depressed, and I feel like the weather is finally matching my mood, which actually helps me feel less depressed. Actually, I think there is research behind the theory that depressed and anxious people feel better when it rains. Scientific or not, the rain helps me know everything will be alright. That everything storms for a bit, but it will pass soon enough. It also shows me that if mother nature can grow dark and let a few drops out, then it is okay if I do too.

It's amazing to me that there are different types of rain. There is the kind of rain in hurricanes and tropical storms that causes damages through flooding. This weekend I feel like my depression was closer to the hurricane side, never realizing the damage I was doing until it passed. Some times I wonder why I have this and remember that all the trials we are given are meant to help us grow. Hurricanes and floods aren't the only things rain can do. Rain can be helpful. It can put fires out, water plants, and add to water supplies. So how can my depression be something helpful? I feel like my depression has helped me feel deeper and stronger, in some ways, which has helped me empathize with others a lot more. It has helped me grow closer to God and Christ because I know someone is there helping me when I feel helpless. It has helped me recognize that feelings are valid and should never be overlooked.

Also depression is like thunder. Sometimes you can hear thunder coming, from far away. It starts out as a low rumble, getting louder the closer it gets. Then sometimes you're just sitting there and with no warning at all there's a loud clap of thunder that leaves your body trembling. Sometimes I can feel my depression slowly creeping in, which I'm grateful for because then I can better prepare myself for when it comes. But sometimes It doesn't happen that way. I can be driving around on a Friday night with my friends, having a great time when it will just overwhelm me. Sometimes I'll just wake up and it will be there full force. Just like the weather, I can't really control when it happens, I just have to handle it the best way I can when it shows up. And there are different ways to handle it. Some days it takes all of my energy just to take a shower and turn Netflix on, whereas on other days I am able to not only shower but go to work, exercise, and hang out. I just have to take it one day at a time, assess the situation when it happens, know that it will pass eventually (even if it may not seem like it at the time) and remember that I have people who love me.

Sorry for all the rain similes, but it makes depression easier to talk about for some reason. This week is mental illness awareness week, so I felt like I had to #seizetheawkward and talk about it a little. I know I need to talk about it more, but I do feel a little awkward bringing it up, which no one should ever feel awkward about talking about it. 1 in 4 people suffer from a mental illness, so they are pretty common and we need to make talking about it common too. Please know that you are loved. I am here for you and if you ever need to talk, please do not hesitate to call or text me! To know more about the Seize the Awkward movement, I have inserted a link for your convenience:
https://www.nami.org/Get-Involved/Awareness-Events/Mental-Illness-Awareness-Week

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