Well, this isn't something out of the blue and I am sure that most of us have done it. May be out of sheer boredom or may be because you would do almost anything to get your mind off a presentation that is screaming "DEADLINE AHEAD" but you are in no way able to get the next slide in shape.
(Dear employers, I am not saying I am too over-worked but you know how it is!!!)
 |
| Whatsapp has become a part of our life-story |
Nevertheless, I find a peculiar joy in scrolling through my contact list on whatsapp and trying to read any status or enlarge any display picture that catches my attention. It is hilariously calming to see some happy faces while there might be ones that may dilute that joy. All in all, an interesting 10 to 15 minutes are consumed and you may think of getting back to what you had been doing.
I do not claim that the exercise is rejuvenating or mood altering all the time. In fact, if you are someone who keeps looking at your Ex's/a long lost friend's whatsapp profile and keep doing the 'math' to decode the 'philosophy' behind the words written in their statuses, you know you are going to end up draining quite a lot of energy and time in vain. Your mathematics can 'almost' never decipher the the lurking 'philosophy' simply because it doesn't work that way. That is probably the most visible side effect of the activity. Either have the courage to let go of your ego and send a Hello or don't bother drooling over their statuses/ citing 'online' on those chat windows. If you are mature enough, you can simply enjoy to melancholic feeling oozing out at that moment and smile away the fact that the name/ names was/were always at the top of your live chat list.
However, there is another aspect which is more comforting and joyous in nature. I would rather emphasize on these ones. They are the stories that make you smile. Most of the time, they are more comprehensible with just a look at the display picture and/ or reading a status. There are many life stories that are hidden in our whatsapp list and they divulge multi-faceted snippets from the lives of our peers or even acquaintances.
Since I just finished scrolling my whatsapp list, I would rather happily share some of the snippets with you and I am sure most of you would relate to these in your own list in some way or the other...
- Friends shifting to new cities, expressing their joy over the expected fun that might unfold or miss the life they have just decided to leave behind. Some are smart enough to put up their new contact numbers as a status. A smart way to dodge "Yaar tune number badal diya tha toh share toh kar deta.."
- The 'Newly married' or 'About to get married' are most easily spotted. 'The Couple' could be seen uninterrupted on their display picture with supporting statuses oozing all kinds of romantic expressions. Also, you feel that the person has suddenly donned a new personality which is way more attractive than what you could ever imagine when he/she was single.
- Also there are cousins, seniors and even younger teachers whose number are stored just because they were 'stored'. You suddenly see a cute new-born's pic with them and its a happy excuse just to drop in a kind word and congratulate them for the life changing event.
- A special category is of those who simply cannot resist to share with the world the feats that they have achieved in their flair for the hobby/ passion that they pursue. Be it the gym or the bike ride, you would know their latest regime or the new destination that they have set their eyes on/ recently visited. On the other hand, some simply express their love for the activity by strong emotional quotes and an appealing photograph. You know it in your bones whether these are just expressions of narcissism or genuine patronage.
- Please don't try and seek a story out of 'Pout-y selfies' and connected statuses like 'In Love with myself'. Although I like the oomph factor and the vibrations of positivism exuding out of such profiles, there is hardly any sense of achievement. The fact that the person is having a good time with the comrade of theirs whose pout is even more revealing theirs and I happy to see them happy, there is hardly anything else that I can say.
(Yes, I know they don't give a damn about it and I have no right to judge them, which I am not either; but 'right to expression' gives me the liberty to express my opinion. Kudos that they are able to achieve the hardest feat on this earth, 'Stay happy' and 'Pout-y' atleast in the display picture. PEACE) - And lastly there would be those (I guess not more than a couple of people in a contact list) who would change their statuses and display pics so often that you wonder if they are being paid on an hourly basis for this. I think it would be a mistake to link this activity to their mood swings although they might claim that there is always a connection.
Towards the end, I am sure if you have shown the patience to read this, you either already have the habit of being a harmless stalker of 'The Whatsapp stories' (congrats if you have just realized it!) or would end up trying it. Try and be as open minded as possible while observing such phenomenon and you would wonder how much can a whatsapp profile say about a person...
Best,
SS...
