![\"\"](\"http:\/\/artsatmichigan.umich.edu\/ink\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Screen-Shot-2022-01-25-at-5.24.00-PM-223x300.png\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cTry to remember how it felt to just make up your own steps,\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n This week\u2019s song entitled <\/span>Anklebiters<\/span><\/i> by Paramore is one that I first heard in my freshman year of high school. It\u2019s a song that I think about often, especially when I feel like I need to make a tough decision that goes against the majority or do something difficult in order to stand up for my own values and be who I want to be.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAnd let anklebiters chew up and spit out someone else.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n Hayley Williams from Paramore stated that the song is about \u201clistening to your heart, and what do you want out of life? Who do you want to be? Versus all this outside influence that I think we get so caught up in, especially in the age of the Internet and all the different opinions that we hear so loudly every day.\u201d My communications classes this semester have led me to reflect on my own social media usage and I\u2019ve realized that it is even more unhealthy than I thought. Often, it makes me feel like I\u2019m living my college years the wrong way.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cFall in love with yourself\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n It\u2019s easier said than done, but the truth is that everyone has their own path. For me, the hardest part is seeing a certain path constantly portrayed in the media and realizing that that path is not mine. It makes me worry that I\u2019m not making the most out of this time of my life. However, when I take a step back, I realize that I\u2019m beyond happy with my decisions, my life, and myself.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhy do you wanna please the world and leave yourself to drop dead?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n When I do what I want to do and follow my own gut and heart, I\u2019m far happier than when I try to force myself into the fictional, nonexistent college-student mold perpetuated by social media. Even though I worry that I\u2019m doing things the \u201cwrong\u201d way because my experience doesn\u2019t mirror the one I see on Instagram and TV and in movies, I would rather follow my own path than follow one that makes me feel like I am betraying myself. And sometimes, that path involves intaking less social media than before.<\/span><\/p>\n