The Social ME

This is not about me at all. This is about my virtual self that exists on social media.

I am outspoken, straight forward, dynamic, passionate, impromptu and emotional. I act on my instincts. I love philosophy and preach even when I am sober.

My social media counterpart is .... well different.

He proof reads every Whatsapp message, for spelling and ambiguity, before sending ; thinks twice and thinks of alternative replies before sending; tweets selective thoughts; and is very particular of how his photos are on Facebook.

He is reserved. He is more thoughtful, more cautious. He's a little over 4 years and growing fast. He might never grow up to be like me. He has so many toys to hide his true self from the world.

This is not what I fear. What I fear is that everyone else too has a similar counterpart who is a complete stranger. With real world merging with the virtual one it will become more and more difficult to tell them apart. Relationships will become more complicated as the person he will be related to, is a personified personality disorder just like him.

The growing social media connect and usage is giving him more and more masks to wear. Underneath these masks, created by ephemeral trends, is the face that is slowly getting lost - identity disappearing - and locked in the hearts of very few who are close to him.

If he evolves to accepting the fact that a majority knows him by his other self and not the true one he will survive, if he fails to then he will fall victim to this fusion.

A Home away from Home

 I have been living away from home since almost three years. And in this time I have lived in quite a few places now. A new place is no longer new to me. Language, food, culture, transport, weather, public infrastructure, pollution and internet connectivity are things I can easily adapt to. I like to travel because I get to experience new things frequently.

This thing that I experienced today, was the first of its kind. It was too familiar to expect. I have never looked out for a place like home whenever I am away, ever, for I might miss home. I didn’t want to become weak, even for a moment, in my quest for answers.  But travel teaches you a lot, breaks many perceptions and makes you a better individual – some of which happened with me today.

My colleague – Viral and I left from our office in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh. It was 19:30 and we started walking towards our hotel. We had to search for some good PGs (places where we could stay as Paying Guests) and hence we decided to explore. We happened to pass by a building where Viral remembered he had lunch once. Though it was a little early, our laziness to come back once we reach our Hotel prompted us to have dinner.

The place was a 2BHK flat on the first floor. The place was converted into a diner, with the drawing room containing all the utensils and adjacent kitchen being the chef’s den. The two bedrooms had dining tables and chairs where customers (family) can eat. The Chef happened to be any average Indian’s fantasy chef – a mother, wife - trained by our tradition and motivated by affection for her diners. Assisting her was her husband. As I settled, it felt weird, only because for the first time I found a new place familiar.

I had a typical Indian dinner with sabji, rice, dal and hot rotis being prepared live. It was amazing, just like home. I thought I had enough and told her I am done when she replied, “Ek aur khaale beta. Javaan hai tu, itne mein kaise pet bhar sakta hai?”

I don’t know how to express in words what I am feeling right now, but those who have been in my shoes before know exactly how I feel.   

I am happy I get to travel a lot. I now have more places I can call home.

Explore! Surprise yourself! Life might just be all about the experiences.