Mirage

I'd just like to say a few things that I've been meaning to say for a few days; but after today these few things seem easier to say, easier to put into words.

A few days ago a friend of mine asked me if I believe that social media and blogs create a mirage of perfection that others feel the need to live up to.

I see where this can come from.
We like to have beautiful creative space. We crave control and perfection.
We do not want to be wallowers in the pool of self-pity. We do not want to be that person with the depressing blog that no one wants to read.
We do not want horrible pictures of ourselves on facebook because they make us feel ugly.
We do not save our sad memories forever in Instagram pictures, to stumble upon later and cry over again.
We do not want to write out our flaws in a post to be read and commented on by strangers. We do not want those facts locked in cyberspace for generations to come.

So yes, to answer your question, maybe we do create a mirage.

In that case, let me set the record straight: I am not perfect.
I sin.
I have bad days. I get homesick.
I procrastinate. I can be unmotivated.
At the moment I have a splitting headache.
I live in a lovely little apartamento on campus with my best friends, but it's not perfect and the people who live here aren't perfect.
We disagree with our friends. We argue. We sometimes argue over meaningless nothings.
We stress about school, relationships, money.
We hurt each other, and we have to apologize.

But at the end of the day I have a God on whom I can rely. My eternal hope is in him. His Son told me not to worry about tomorrow, or anything really.
He gave me friends to share the joy and the struggle.

So at the end of the day, when I sit down to write a post and I am tired and stressed, I am faced with a decision. Do I vent? Or do I choose joy?

Here in this place I decide to choose joy.

PS: here is a picture of us dancin' it out to the Cupid Shuffle for stress relief.