Adding a Filter Would Do Just Fine — Horizon Magazine 2018
Are you afraid of being a laughingstock? Add a filter!
I often hear my grandma speaking about getting that all-important beauty sleep and keeping myself hydrated. But oh dear Granny! Just leave it on us millenials. We’ve got all those magical tools within our hands. Our potion can turn brunettes into blondes, with freckles all gone! Ever need to feel self-love? We’ll simply post a picture on our social media with a dope beautification filter, and the world will just go berserk! Everything is under control, Granny! Please save your lectures on me dumping my dope friend circle.
You’ve just got to accept it. Out of a billion opportunities of your day going haywire, you’re still stuck with the same one. The trauma is real; these insensitive zits appear on the front lines of your forehead to proclaim their false supremacy just like an uninvited visitor.
Wishful to just scrap them off, you seek remedies and several treatments until you loose count. Nevertheless, the situation just keeps on feeding the swirling whirlpool and is ready to gulp you in it. Though you’re up against a bunch of Dugtrios and Digletts (Pokemons, anyone?), they’re hard to beat on the rough terrain (that’s your face).
But don’t get swayed by those innumerable heartless comments on your Instagram selfie. Regarding them as constructive critiques, you have two distinct approaches to adopt:
1) Filter out your social circle to discard grits that solely bombard negativity. Learn to live with your true, imperfect self.
2) Continue to pay heed and run frantically in search of the most appropriate solution. One temporary suggestion: Try out the new snap filters; you will be slaying your social media profiles, witnessing sky rocketing ‘likes’ quota and receiving resounding self-satisfaction, at least virtually.
This situation isn’t quite enigmatic; adding a filter would do just fine. Not the beautification app ones! Filter your elaborated social circle. The ultimate paradox leading you to societal nadir would be you soaking in unwanted negativity, meanwhile straining your credential to its extinction.
Trust me. Even after all the efforts to amend and fill your imperfect gaps, there’s always going to be a mob desperately aiming shrewd arrowheads towards your bubble of hope.
The late 1960’s conforming ideologies are still glued to common boomers. For them, the last two decades have been an unpleasant roller-coaster ride. With unpredictability creeping in modern lifestyles, boomers think of this revolution as an infringement to their own freedom of actions. Therefore, it becomes quite esoteric to absorb that in the contemporary world, rapidly changing styles cater to a desire for novelty and individualism. It has become imperative for a bride to be fair colored and have perfectly braided long hair. Anybody short of fulfilling such benchmarks is to be utterly disregarded, wrongfully disgraced and ruthlessly rejected with a permanent social stigma. Quite similarly, if you’re a man who’s tall and handsome, Mubarak! You’re safe.
Feeling ‘ugly’ or ‘unattractive’ seeps into your life like poison, and it affects everything. Feeling worthless does the same. We internalize these limitations, and it takes an internal revolution to get rid of them.
- Rupi Kaur
Such societal conformity trigger millennials to attain desired perfections. Feeling entrapped in a cobweb of double-consciousness, they end up discovering beauty enhancement applications to be the ultimate fit for their facial jigsaw.
It is my belief that self affirmation is the ultimate form of nirvana. This generation credits individualism but disregards over-sophistication. It is an art to identify the balanced proportion. Besides, it’s quite unfortunate to witness millennials consuming their energy, money, time and creativity just to retrieve others’ appreciative attention. The opportunity cost of following the latter is undeniably high.
There is no potion which best identifies the balance to our desires. It wouldn’t be irrelevant to mention our escalating negative instinct of mining perfection everywhere. Needless to add, there is a strong reason behind this change. It has become extremely easy to extract inspiration from our reference groups. We’re just a click away from fan-girling over the wardrobe collections of picturesque Fawad Khans and Anne Hathaways in the country. Barely negligent to this fashion-ova, everyone is busy constructing brick walls for his/her Utopian fort. Even with one’s individualism at stake, social identities are being forged with dexterity.
The best remedy to instill seeds of self-affirmation is to be self-aware. Instead of internalizing the ‘DUFF’ (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) label, know your worth and proclaim your individualism. There has often been a conflict between boomers and millennials regarding the KPIs (key performance indicators) of a successful individual. However, both sections have reached a consensus where they believe that game changers are those who break (critique’s) chains and those who cut loose the anchor of their inferiority complex. Working along such lines would definitely set a steady rhythm to the future.
‘That’ DUF girl has experimented with those innumerable cosmetic products and has drained her moneybag for all those expensive dermatologist appointments but is still not comfortable under her skin due to the persistent body-shaming. Meanwhile, ‘Mr. Hairless Hare’ has a loan long overdue because of that expensive dental teeth-alignment surgery and has another hair transplant lined up due to stagnant facial hair growth. Welcome to the era where we are told to respectfully overlook a book’s bland cover page but are never stopped from raising sardonic brows over ‘bland’ human faces.
May God Aid those with an imperfect face or a deformed body structure. Better suited, may they be able to fix their fate and find solace using all those Instagram filters.
It really is a shame to be a part of a society that treats a Chihuahua better than ‘that’ person. We, the millennials, call ourselves a civilized nation, but we’re perpetually targeting victims to cage them in the unattractive pigeon-hole.
If you’re on the receiving end of the DUFF-prattle, it’s time to negotiate a fair deal with the mirror that you hold with a disgruntled look. Ease yourself by being optimistic. Above all, avoid getting intimidated by a snake’s hiss and dwell prudently to nullify chances of getting bitten. Since predators can smell your anxiety with epic proficiency, drop your ‘once-bitten-twice-shy’ attitude with good riddance.
Carpe Diem, Millennials!
About the Author
Taimur is a graduate student at University of Houston, TX. He loves to sketch, write and is always interested in how to glorify arts with words. You can send your feedback, or get in touch with him at muhammadtaimurkamil@gmail.com.
