“Just one more”

One more selfie after 95 others

Only one more attempt to find their “good side”

With another filter, another caption, another expression

Only to achieve the same look as society’s possession

“Be yourself”

Society shouts from every megaphone, billboard, and the mouths of promotional speakers

While whispering cunningly of how the standards are really set

Dictating the unspoken laws by which the public must strive to live by

Or else fade into the faceless, unappreciated mass that refuse to comply

“Everyone’s wearing them”

Size 2, the new Size 0

Size 4, the new Size 2

Everything else fails to meet the same perfection

In spite of their beautiful personality or complexion

Society isn’t about self-expression

It’s a dictated, demanded, yet dignified excuse for cookie-cutter presentation

So let me ask you…

Does sepia make you feel special?

Does black and white bring you back to the old Hollywood era of Ms. Monroe?

Does chrome create a better, more tanned version of yourself?

Does noir initiate a new artist?

We are told a filter makes you beautiful

A change makes you powerful

Winged eyeliner makes you fierce

But when was the last time anyone ever

Realized that society is the filter…or are we just not that clever?

So here is my voice and my version with #nofilter:

Beauty is not defined by the brand, the style, the size

It is discovered when you smile with your eyes

And dance or laugh as if no one is watching

With the friends who love to stay up late talking

So stop monitoring social media

For every like, favorite, and friend request

Because, let’s be honest, do all of their opinions really matter?

Must you try to look a certain way at their behest?

We try to impress a world that could care less about our life chapters

So it’s sad that so many still feel the pressure

To conform to a standard, a specific beauty, a “filter”

Because we are more than society’s limits or 140 characters on Twitter

So I’m #sorrynotsorry when I say

The only thing that matters is your opinion at the end of the day.