The Life of a Millennial: Is New Age Love A False Reality?
The Life of a Millennial…I was scrolling on Instagram this week and ran across a video. It showed rapper Juelz Santana and his long time girlfriend Kimbella on stage, and he was asking for her hand in marriage. Although this may sound like a fairy tale, this couple showed all of their previous relationship issues on a reality TV show called Love and Hip Hop. We watched Kimbella fight with Juelz about infidelity, drug abuse and being a good father to their children.
Juelz was recently convicted of possession of firearms by a convicted felon and one count of carrying a weapon on an aircraft. What makes this so interesting is he will be sentenced soon and ironically he proposes. She took to Instagram after she was proposed to and stated something close to “next year will make ten years with this man. Ladies, when the love is real, you wait no matter how long.” Interesting.
See what millennials are facing now is the pressure of social media and living up to imaginary standards. We see couples get engaged, married, buy a house and start businesses. What we don’t see is their journey, how much they struggled to get to a happy place and their overall plan to survive.
Love has become this “watered down” image of false reality just for the perfect picture on social media, literally. On top of that, we have public figures planting these morals in people’s heads that you have to STAY DOWN, be disrespected, tolerate less than you’re worth to get married and be happy.
What I’m afraid of is the impact it’ll leave on the next generation. Every single teen and preteen has access to social media and television. Although some may be limited, they see these things. I’m dreading having to preach to my younger family members how this is not ok, especially as a female.
Being in love has completely evolved over time, making it really hard to connect with individuals. We’d rather text instead of calling. We like pictures on Instagram to show admiration. I’m starting to think people have even forgotten how to date. We’re so disconnected from real connections that we don’t even realize it. Although this has become a new trend, it’s not too late to reverse the bad habits.
If you have a love interest, take some time to call and have a conversation without responding to their text. If someone says “I don’t like talking on the phone” ask why? Before the new age technology we had no choice but to talk to one another.
What is prohibiting the gap between effective communications? Why are we so comfortable with not talking to one another?
If you’re on a nice date, put your phone away. Take the time to get to know the other person. If you see they’re on the phone or distracted by other things, simply acknowledge how you’ve made an effort to not be on your phone.
Let’s take some initiative to connect with our peers. Everything doesn’t have to be a picture or a “moment” shared on social media. Don’t let the fabricated lives of others stop you from being authentically YOU…a REAL reality!
Feature Photo: vh1.com
