Selfies are something we associate with narcissism -- and, of course, something we love to associate with millennials. We're supposedly so self-absorbed with ourselves that we just have to snap a picture of how beautiful we look and show it to the rest of the world so they can agree with us about how attractive we are.
We forget that, before photographs, royals used to stand for hours posing for paintings of themselves to be hung in their home for all their guests to see.
Now that we can do it instantly and often, we act like the worst thing someone can do is take a minute out of their day to show their face on social media.
But the thing is, I love looking at other people's selfies. I'd much rather see your beautiful face than what you had for lunch. Don't get me wrong, I'm a #foodie just as much as the next girl, but when I see a selfie I can't help but smile. I don't think, "Ugh this person just loves their face so much like please stop." I think, "Hey, look! That's the face of someone I care about. I love that face. I'm so glad they posted a picture because now I get to see them smiling. I'm going to like this picture so they know I like their face a lot." And then I double tap and keep scrolling. That person gets to show off their awesome selfie and I get to see it and like it. It's a win-win for everyone.
And maybe selfies are narcissistic. Maybe the instant gratification we associate with likes on a picture isn't something we should be striving for. But why is that such a bad thing? Why are we supposed to hate our faces? Personally, I'd much rather love myself than hate myself, and believe me -- I've done both. But life is so much more fun when you indulge in things as simple as a selfie to kindle your self-confidence instead of being ashamed of your face and body.
Selfies don't hurt anyone. It's a face. You can keep scrolling through if you'd like, and forget it exists. Move on with your life.
I personally love seeing selfies. I want to see all of the pictures of your smiling face. Send me your selfies and we can bond over how cute you are. It'll be great. The naysayers who hate all things self-love and millennial related can cry over the narcissism of our generation while we smile and snapchat.