The virtual life: keep it real

It is time for confessions, and I won’t hide the truth from you. Hear this; it has become a tradition for me to go through my virtual space each morning as I crawl out of bed. As one would search through his/her room/house to seek for what to fix or to retrieve a sort after item so do I walk through my phone to pick-up from where I left on my last visit; as chores are performed in households at dawn so do I undertake my morning duties in my virtual home.

If it isn’t checking for new emails, it is to check my Facebook news feed, chats, and notifications, or messages on WhatsApp. And with extra social media platforms then the list would exceed what’s enumerated above. My virtual home has come to stay. But before you analyse my condition do know that am not the only tenant in this space. You are a part of it. Scrolling through this article means you are at home with me.

Together our virtual home has become a destination of great interest. With some internet users, while there may be a want of doors and windows, walkways and lanes in this virtual space, yet, they are more familiar with the routes that lead virtually than they do their real streets. Being social media and internet savvy is now the definition of relevance.

Knowing what trends are the definition of “enlightened”. And this trending news/video segment of social media has caused many to be perpetual web surfers. What results is addiction. But a life lived virtually is in no way a substitute for real-life experience. Too much of virtual life can deceive the mind in regards to how it perceives what life actually means.

To crave for LIKES, comments, and SHARES on social media is a wrong motive for living in the virtual space. Seeking to win acceptance online by portraying a fake life can be likened to chasing after the wind. It will profit nothing to create an impression that isn’t sustainable. Living fake lives online helps no one. Instead, it will damage the mindset needed to strive for excellence.

The number of persons on your friend’s list doesn’t mean you will win an election. So, let’s keep it real. We are real humans irrespective of the medium of communication in use. You see, a human astronaut in outer space is no less a human. The same morals, ethics, values we require in real life mustn’t disappear while we transit into the virtual space.

We must not seek to live two lives. Virtual communication is impersonal but humans are the actors. How it is used will rob off on the user.