Exercising Wisdom in Sharing Our Stories

I’m glad social media wasn’t around when I was a child. What kind of posts would I find on my mother’s timeline? Would she have shared that embarrassing picture of me on the potty? Would she have vented when I said something rude to her? Would she have bemoaned on an Instagram post how many times she had to get up with me in the night? Or maybe she would have only cute pictures of me dressed up in floral dresses and videos of me learning to walk.

As I edited a photo of my son a few months ago for my Instagram feed, I wondered about this. How would my son feel if he ever took the time to scroll through my social media posts? What if he read all my articles where I used him as an illustration? Would he cringe? Would he groan, “Mom, why did you have to write that?”

We all have stories. Some are meant to be shared to encourage and give voice to others’ stories. But some are meant to be kept close. I’m learning that perhaps some pictures aren’t meant to be shared publicly but enjoyed in my quaint home on a lazy Sunday afternoon with close family members. I’m also learning that not all stories are meant to be proclaimed on the internet, but some are meant to be shared in my living room with trusted friends. There is power in a picture and strength behind a story, but sometimes it’s more important to protect those I love, including myself. Discerning the difference isn’t always easy. It takes the wisdom found in being slow to speak and asking the right questions before we share.

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