I Love Instagram...

...for my own use.

You should too.

I'll be real honest here. When I click on my Instagram icon on my phone, I almost always go immediately to my "home page". Here, I see all of my tiny square thumbnails. These thumbnails display, in the palm of my hand, everything I love in life. I see my life. My loves. My joys. Things I found ironic, amusing, adorable, funny. I'm so, ridiculously proud of my Instagram feed.

This is not a humble brag. I so so so sincerely, hope that everyone feels this way. About their own "home page". Without ever knowing it, I have lived by the quote, "Every day may not be good, but there is something good in everyday." Instagram proves this. For me at least. I encounter, at the very, very, bare minimum, least one beautiful thing a day. I try to limit my postings. I don't want to be annoying to my "Followers". Yet, I love and want to remember a lot of things in my life.

I "like" others' photos, because they too, are creating a beautiful portfolio of their life. A portfolio that is organized. If someone asks to see a picture of my son, instead of sifting through my thousands of phone photos, I can pull up his specific #hashtag. If I need to find a picture of my whole family, I have a hastag for that too. One for my dogs even. A hasthag for reoccurring events. Ones that connect me with others at the same happening...such as a wedding.

Sure. I enjoy the encouraging and complimentary comments. I enjoy the funny ones, too. I like when someone shares a similar story or moment. (And, a little known secret, that I probably shouldn't share, as it reveals a bit too much of my OCD, but, I have been known to "like" my own photo. When, and only when, it has 10, 19, 29, 39, 49, 59, or 69 likes (those higher numbers kind of never happen, but whatevs.) I have no real explanation for this.

Recently, I have tried to not be to connected to my phone. To let events happen and not whip out my phone to photograph them. To try to be more "present". I try not to bring my phone to the table during meals. I try to post to Instagram or Facebook while I really have nothing else to do, or no one else is around. I use the word "try" because I have a lot of room to improve in this realm, but have not fully decided that it's what I want. I so love my daily postings. I just don't want to do without. It's very difficult, finding a nice balance in this world filled with such beauty, and the easy access of social media.

For now, I will continue to post 1-6 times a day. These photographs are mine. They are for me. I love them all.