You opened social media to check one thing. One.
Now, an hour later, you’re emotionally exhausted, spiritually confused, and oddly mad at a woman named Brenda.
We need to talk.
Why We Scroll
People use social media for many reasons. Some share a small slice of their day. Some run businesses. Some post for fun. Some just want to keep up with family members who live far away—but still somehow know when you rearranged your living room.
And then there’s the rest of us—The Scrollers.
We scroll in the morning.
We scroll while waiting on coffee.
We scroll while watching TV.
We scroll while pretending to listen to someone talk to us in real life.
Scrolling has become the background noise of modern existence.
The Tingle of Outrage
As you scroll, you will inevitably encounter content you dislike. Content you do not agree with. Content that makes you think, “Well… that’s not right,” or “Who asked for this?” or “This is why aliens won’t visit us.”
And suddenly—suddenly—your fingers start tingling.
Your thumbs get bold.
Your pointer finger feels righteous.
You feel a strong, spiritual urge to type a comment.
But here’s the excellent news: ✨ You do not have to. ✨
The Power to Keep Scrolling
Did you know—truly, did you know—that you possess the power to keep scrolling? You can swipe up. Swipe down. Swipe left. Swipe right. Any direction that leads you away from chaos and toward peace.
You can simply… leave it alone.
No debate.
No correction.
No “I’m just being honest.”
You are not required to attend every argument you’re invited to on the internet.
Learning the Hard Way
Ask me how I learned this.
I learned the hard way during the Year of Our Lord 2020—when fear, anger, and absolute nonsense reached historic levels. When people stopped being regular humans and became keyboard gladiators. When comment sections turned into the Hunger Games and civility died somewhere between a meme and a hot take.
Now, I believe we always had a little ugly in us. But 2020 said, “Go ahead. Let it out. No consequences.” And people said, “Don’t mind if I do.”
I spent hours scrolling through comments. Hours. Reading, reacting, getting angry, scared, and spiritually drained. And one day the Holy Spirit gently—but firmly—said, “Ma’am. Stop. This is not your assignment.”
Pulling Away from the Chaos
It wasn’t easy. I’d open a post, roll my eyes, and dive straight into the comments “just to see what people are saying.” For fun, I told myself.
It was never fun.
Eventually, the Holy Spirit had to pull me out of the comment section like a parent yanking a toddler away from a live electrical outlet. No. We don’t play here.
Curating a Positive Feed
These days, my social media diet is artistic, colorful, creative, and encouraging. I post to share what I’ve made or a moment from my life. Because here’s what we forget: social media is a highlight reel, not a documentary. A snapshot, not the whole story. A single square, not the entire quilt of someone’s life.
And yet… despite this gentle, happy, crochet-and-flowers corner of the internet, the ugly still shows up. Every time. Uninvited. Loud. Confident.
The Sally Effect
For example, a crochet artist I follow does absolutely stunning work. She’s been crocheting for years. She sells patterns. She creates literal fiber art. One day, she posts a short video of herself crocheting.
Enter Sally.
Sally has never crocheted a stitch. Not once. She does not know what a tension gauge is. She has never held a hook in her life. But Sally is deeply offended by what she sees.
Sally comments, “This is painful to watch.”
Sally.
Then don’t watch. No one made you stay. You are not being held hostage by yarn. Use your finger—yes, that one—and scroll on past. Freedom is yours.
When Critique Becomes Toxic
Another embroidery artist posted a video of her working up a gorgeous stitch—beautiful colors, smooth technique, a literal work of art.
The comments?
Not about the stitch.
Not about the creativity.
About her nails. Her nails.
Apparently, society decided that no creative work can be appreciated unless the artist has a fresh manicure. Michelangelo could never survive Instagram.
“This is what we’ve come to,” I whispered to my phone.
We lost the ability to simply say, “How lovely,” and move on. Instead, we scan for flaws, for mistakes, for something—anything—to critique, even when no one asked and no one cares.
Women Critiquing Women
What truly breaks my heart: most of the creative accounts I follow are run by women. And the ugliest comments? Also from women.
What happened to women supporting women? When did encouragement become optional but criticism mandatory?
And do not—DO NOT—get me started on comment sections under photos of women bottle-feeding their babies. Those threads are so ugly they make me want to unplug the internet, apologize to the Earth, and start communicating exclusively via carrier pigeon.
The Lesson
So why am I writing this?
Education.
It costs you nothing to be kind.
It costs you nothing to say nothing.
And it costs you absolutely nothing to keep scrolling.
But peace? Peace is priceless.
Final Advice
If you want to protect it, I offer this final, loving advice:
Stay out of the comments.
