Do Selfies Make Us Vain?

The society that teaches girls (and boys) that posting selfies makes them vain is the same one that teaches them to mask self-love with self-loathing.     
   
     We all get at least a little bit nostalgic as each year nears its end, and I am definitely not immune to this phenomenon. The other day, I decided to take a trip down memory lane and look through all of my Instagram photos. In doing so, I noticed a trend; I had posted quite a few selfies within the past year and a half. I started to get a little embarrassed, worrying that this caused me to appear vain and self-centered. After all, when you post a selfie, you're basically saying, "I like how I look in this picture, so I'm showing everyone." I always get really annoyed when girls hashtag their selfies with "ugly," or "gross." If you really thought you looked ugly in the photo, you wouldn't post it.
     Usually, those negative hashtags are used as a cover-up, an overcompensation to prevent people from labeling those who post them as arrogant. So does posting a selfie make you conceited? No. It makes you self-aware. You'll post a selfie when you feel the most at peace with yourself, the most comfortable with who you are and what you look like. There's absolutely nothing wrong with loving who you are enough to show the world. The society that teaches girls (and boys) that posting selfies makes them vain is the same one that teaches them to mask self-love with self-loathing. 
     We're taught that the most accepted emotions we should feel towards ourselves are disdain and disapproval. If this wasn't the case, there wouldn't be a market for procedures like plastic surgery and beauty products such as makeup. We live in a world of slut-shaming, body-shaming, gender norms, and expectations. It's like we're never supposed to be fully accepting of ourselves; we always have to want to look better. This "better" comes in so many different forms that it's nearly impossible to perfect them all, trapping us into a never-ending maze of bitterness and self-loathing. And if, by chance, at least for a day, we do like ourselves, we're taught to feel wrong. We're supposed to stay trapped in the maze, in a futile attempt to reach an unattainable perfection. 
     I say we call bullshit on that. Let us love ourselves. Let us be comfortable with who we are. Let us post selfies that range from silly to sophisticated, and not feel judged or guilty for them. Let us preach self-love instead of self-loathing. That never-ending maze doesn't have an end because, just like "perfection," it doesn't even exist- you do. You're real, and real is beautiful. 
     So go ahead. Look into the mirror, and say, "You're beautiful," and mean it. It won't make you arrogant, I promise. And if you like how your hair looks, your eyes look, your outfit looks, etc., go ahead and post a selfie. Don't be afraid to show the world who you are. 

(I've decided to note the music I was listening to while writing each post, so..)
Soundtrack: Transatlanticism by Death Cab for Cutie