Sunday Night With John: For Me or For The World

The sun was setting just beyond White Rock Mountain in the Ozarks. After a long, six-hour, eleven-mile climb, it was a sight to behold. It reminded me why I backpack and why it will always be worth the long climbs.  As I swung in my camping hammock, I re-lived the hike with my best friend, Kyle. We talked of the glorious waterfall we had lunch by. We talked about the first sight of the peak of the mountain and discussed our various aches and pains.  After the hammock tents were set up, the wood was cut, and all I wanted to do was cook up some grub, I scooped up my phone and snapped a picture of sunset before the sun dipped behind the peak of the mountain.

Now came the dilemma that has arrived with the invention of social media. Is this moment, and the picture I had captured, for the internet and the world or would I keep it for myself? In this world of modern technology, we can share anything within seconds of it happening. Backpacking and losing cell phone connection creates a situation where I have time to process and question, do I want to share this moment, this sunset, the sunset I earned with a long hard hike with anyone but Kyle. Our worlds are smaller now, it's easier to stay in touch with loved ones far away, it’s easy to share our life with friends present and past. We get instant feedback from likes, shares, comments, and views. I know this is a good thing. Making relationships connections easier to maintain means a better life, but that doesn’t mean everything is for sharing and the internet. Maybe, just maybe we have lost those private moments, where we say,  you had to be there.

Some of the my fondest memories in life have no pictures accompanying them. Most of them have never come close social media, and nor do I want them too. I have allowed them to stay memories, private moments with with family or friends. In an forever shrinking world we will have to make these type of decisions more often. What is for just for me, and what is for the world. If we make everything for the world then how do we know the difference between private and public, how do we know the meaning of special moment if everyone gets a window into it. So for this guy and his Ozark sunset, it’s just for me.