The Night My Hand Stopped at a Short Post
This is for anyone who sees a short post while scrolling social media and rereads it, wondering if it was aimed at them.
Scenes
- One line on social media turns my feelings upside down — When you see a short post while scrolling social media, you keep checking the same screen again and again to see if it was aimed at you.
- Even after getting angry, I wonder first if I’m being too sensitive — I start writing a comment, delete it, then return to the post. Before asking why I’m angry, I wonder if I’m being too sensitive.
- I open and close the comment box, then reread the same post — While scrolling social media at the edge of the bed, my hand stops at a short post. After opening and closing the comment box, I return to the words I just saw.
- Anger grows with the meaning we attach after the words — The first sentence is a fact, while “it was aimed at me” is an interpretation. The more you reread it to check, the more your body takes it as something you must respond to.
- Before writing a comment, look for the first change in your body — Before opening the comment box, cover the screen and look for just one place in your body that changed first. A moment appears when you don’t have to answer right away.
- You don’t have to feel calm right away just because you paused once — It’s okay if you end up looking at the same post again. What stays with you is the moment you notice there was a small space between fact and interpretation.
Stories by Dalbit
- Dalbit
- On payday, I want to ask how you are first
- When I think of my child’s report card, I end up grading myself too.
- After hearing about my friend, my own day feels small.
- Even in the salon mirror, the silence between me and my husband follows me.
- Folding laundry, I start worrying about my child again
- In the family chat, it’s always Mom who speaks
- When the elevator doors close, I want a moment alone.
- After I take a photo, I only look for my old face.