To Post Or Not To Post

So here’s the thing: every time there is a day of significance like 9/11 or a communal rallying cry around a cause like Black Lives Matter, people run to their Instagram accounts to share the same five memes all day long. I actually believe this irresistible impulse to share comes from a place of kindness, from a sincere desire to participate in a communal outpouring of emotion. In a nation where loneliness is an epidemic, wanting to come together as a community to feel something deeply together is, frankly, kind of reassuring.

But (and you knew there was going to be a “but”), sometimes I wonder whether we can get swept up in this communal rush to post? Like, oh crap, it’s 9/11, what am I going to share today? And here’s the secret: you don’t have to post anything. You can feel deeply about a cause or an event, and if you don’t post about it on social media, that doesn’t mean you care any less.

There’s also the nagging fear of, what does it mean if I *don’t* post? And sure, there might be some folks who keep track of whether the people they spend time with & the brands they support uniformly share their values. At a base level, I suppose I understand this inclination? But it also sounds kind of exhausting, to evaluate the socio-political purity of every person & brand you interact with. Like, I’m not going to stop shopping at Sephora if they don’t post about a Supreme Court decision that matters to me. If you don’t share a post dedicated to Women’s History Month, we can still be friends!

So if it feels meaningful & authentic to you to post something, go for it. I love this for you. But don’t let the fear of what *not posting* means be your guidepost. You know who you are, and that is the most important thing you can share ✌🏻

PS, this is a picture of me supporting a cause near & dear to my heart, when I’m posting about it & when I’m not, wearing my heart on my sleeve, er, chest.