Now first, I will disclose that there are very few people who love a good picture more than I do. And I mean a good picture. One where the lighting looks as if the gods have adjusted the sun, moon, stars, and then every nearby light to get it just right, your outfit looks just how you intended and your smile is that perfect smile right before it turns into the I’m-trying-to-look-so-happy-I-look-like-I’m-in-pain smile. I thoroughly enjoy that quality filter that makes you look like you’ve spent just the right amount of time out in the sun earlier that day (even though you were being lazy and spent the entire day watching Netflix in bed) and I can appreciate a witty, clever caption as much as the next person, but somewhere in between “Slumber” and “Lo-fi” I realized that it doesn't actually matter. My life is so much more than what I post.

Social media. We all use it some way or another. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat. I use them all and I use them pretty frequently. I have come to find that I have such a love-hate relationship with these outlets. They can be tricky to navigate and I think these apps should really come with warnings.

Caution: Snapchat may make events seem more fun than they actually are.

Because if you’re really having the time of your life, would you really worry about taking out your phone to record it for others to see?

Beware: Instagram may make lives look deceivingly picture perfect.

Because only the coolest, prettiest, most perfect moments are going to make the cut. Anything else, anything less than perfect, won’t be shown, but don’t forget that their life still has average moments just like yours.

Warning: Facebook users may appear to have way more friends than anybody could actually ever want.

Because you may be able to wish them all a happy birthday by hitting a few keys, but I’d like to see you get them all gifts.

Disclaimer: Twitter users are not always quick and witty thinkers when they are out from behind the screen.

Because that clever tweet with all the favorites? That actually took them an hour to come up with.

It’s a dangerous thing social media does to its users. Many times it gives people an incredibly false and calculated view of a person’s life. It gives us the idea that imperfections can simply be edited, selected, deleted, covered up, and filtered out, only leaving the beautiful, perfected final copy for all to see. It is so easy to forget that what people post is only their highlight reel, it rarely includes their mess-ups, their falls or their bloopers, but this doesn’t mean they didn’t happen. There are times, of course, that everyone wants to eliminate the bad, the ugly, the raw, but this is not realistic. It’s not life.

I don’t want to fake a candid moment for a picture, I actually want to be laughing my heart out, even if that means I won’t look as cute in the photo. I hate to condense my thoughts into 140 characters because there is so much more going on in my mind, that cutting it down would be an injustice. I don’t want my life to seem like something it isn’t just to impress the people who choose to follow me.

Your social media is your voice to the world. It is a reflection of you. Do not get caught up in the ratios, the rules, the unspoken and meaningless laws. Post what you want to post and do it because it is a moment you loved, or because you believe in the message it shares, or because it is important to you. Stay true to yourself. It doesn’t matter the number likes, favorites, views, or comments you receive.

Hasn't your mother ever told you that It's what's beneath the filter that counts?