I will take hundreds before I find the perfect one.

It is imperative to pick the correct filter.

It needs to make me look tanner

while also concealing the bags under my eyes.

I want to appear as though I am having the time of my life;

I want to be portrayed as the girl with a great smile.

“She looks so happy!” they’ll say as they double-tap.

No matter how many likes or followers we obtain,

It doesn’t change what is behind the lens.

We hide behind false pictures of ourselves,

writing a story with pixels from our imaginary life,

using these posed and filtered characters to live

the lives we could only have lived on the internet.

My character is a princess that has no concern for financial worries,

her dad is the king and her mom the queen,

with an endless supply gold for tuition in the treasure room.

My character does not need to work long hours at a minimum wage job

or clip coupons to find the best deals on cereal.

#NeedASecondJob

My character is brave and does not fear finals week.

She is currently tackling seventeen credit hours this semester;

GPA and failing are not relevant in her kingdom.

#StrugglingToKeepUp

My character is the symbol of bliss.

She is the sun that cannot be extinguished

by the horizon stress;

the endless source of light that her followers gravitate towards.

#JustWantToRunAway

My character is just a character.

She hides her true identity

behind hashtags and a filter.

#OnceAponASelfie

                        -Nicole Bevilacqua