The Lens We Scroll Through

I’ll be honest...there was a stretch of time when I realized that scrolling through my social media feeds was doing me zero favors. Every post felt like it was designed to tick me off, rile me up, or make me despair about humanity. The sad thing is that half the time, the thing I was so worked up about turned out to be half true… or not true at all. It’s humbling to admit how many times I’ve been baited into outrage over something that didn’t even happen the way it was presented. (Basically, I was like Pavlov’s dog, but instead of drooling at a bell, I was rage-clicking at headlines.)

But here’s the tricky part...social media isn’t all doomscrolling and fake news. Some of the most powerful, eye-opening stories I’ve ever heard came across my feed. Voices that had been ignored or silenced suddenly had a microphone. PeopleI never would have crossed paths with in real life shared experiences that challenged me, softened me, even changed me. Iwas able to share my stories, which sometimes were helpful...even healing to someone else. So yes, the digital world can be toxic… but it can also be holy ground.

Science actually confirms this whiplash. Researchers (smarter than me, thank goodness) have shown that algorithms feed us what keeps us hooked...which usually means more of what confirms what we already think. That’s why our feeds so often look like a funhouse mirror version of ourselves. If we’re not careful, those echo chambers shrink our imagination. Which is why curiosity isn’t just something we need for others’ stories...it’s something we need for our own. We have to keep asking: What biases am I bringing to the way I hear, tell, and share stories? How is my perspective shaping the lens itself? Sometimes that lens helps us notice beauty others miss. Other times, it blinds us to the bigger picture. Both can be true...even at the same time.

Spiritual traditions have been waving a caution flag about this for centuries. In Buddhism, there’s the practice of Right Speech...the idea that words should be true, kind, and necessary. (Imagine if that was the rule on Facebook, right?) In the Christian tradition, James describes the tongue as a tiny spark that can set a whole forest on fire...which, in 2025, probably translates to “the post is the spark, and the comments section is the forest fire.” The point is the same: our words matter, especially the ones we put into the world for everyone to see.

So, just a thought...before you hit “share,” pause and ask three questions: Is it true? Is it helpful? Is it necessary? (Bonus question: Will this make me cringe in two years when it pops up in my memories?) Because the stories we post aren’tneutra...they’re threads in the fabric of our shared world. They can unravel trust and connection…or they can weave us closer together. The difference usually comes down to whether we stayed curious...about the story, about our own lens, and about the people on the other side of the screen.

Still weaving (while also not trying not to take the bait),

Sam