We could borrow a lot of things from Safaricom’s top man, like many millions, or free airtime, or a chance to work at one of the most reputable firms in Kenya but today let us stop for a moment and honour the fact that for a man with as much wealth and influence as his, he did not litter our social media feeds with a gazillion pictures of his wedding. Heck, he did not write some crazy hashtags as #MyBaeFinerThanYours #TuxedoShoppingWithLeBaeInBeverlyHills. In fact, his was a low-key wedding attended by close relatives and friends. (Un)fortunately, some attendees of the wedding managed to sneak a couple of pictures on social media eliciting mixed reactions from Kenyan netizens. As well-meaning people wished them well in their union, the naysayers equally voiced their negativity.
Lately, social media has been abuzz with news of some media personalities’ marriage that was highly publicized and gone sour. We will not mention their names because really, they have been in the limelight long enough already. The couple has received support and bashing almost in equal measure from the social media faithful. While some quarters pray that their marriage is not on the rocks, some quarters blame their public display of affection (PDA) and brew all sorts of rumours concerning the stability of their union.
Love is a beautiful thing. There is nothing wrong with ‘flaunting’ your significant other on social media. Let the world see how toned his body is. Let the world see how curvy she is. Take pictures every 2 seconds you spend together. In fact, don’t let go of their hands in public. Over compliment them even when they have a rustic sense of fashion. Feed them at your favourite restaurant. Hug them and take forever to disengage from their hands. Let the world know that the two of you are on the clichéd cloud nine. That you’re madly in love with each other but be wary of the harm such relationship antics are capable of inflicting in your love life. Too much PDA is wrong in many ways, some of which I have listed below.
Public ridicule
It is one thing for people to religiously come to your social media platforms to like and comment on the 7689 pictures you post on a daily basis and another to genuinely like how your relationship is fairing. When things are all rosy and you are thriving in love, no will give much attention to your relationship. Once you hit a snag, these same people who do not give a damn about your happiness not will forget to poke their noses into your affair. They will laugh about how you said you will last forever only to break up faster than you took to get married.
Break up aftermath
You post on their Facebook wall and they respond on the same wall. You tag them and litter our feeds with their ‘MCM/WCW’ photos. The world knows them by their names. If we met them offline, there would not be many introductions as to who they are. Such is the extent you have gone to introduce us to their world. Alas! Things go south and you break up. There is a deep-seated hatred in you and you want nothing to do with them. To get rid of them completely, you start erasing their pictures from your timeline. It’s a herculean task. It drains you. How will you face the friends you used to brag to about your significant other? Save yourself from all that. Avoid PDA.
No privacy
You live online. All you do is upload on Instagram or Snapchat or any other social media platform. Everyone knows that the two of you are dating. It is no longer a two-people affair. The world is in it with you. It almost feels like you’re in a relationship with the world as well. Your love life is subject to public scrutiny. There’s nothing you will do and it goes unnoticed. It’s about time you considered going slow on how much info you let out. Limit the number of people you let in your love life.
Annoyance to the public
Holding hands in public is not bad but going to the extent of blocking people as they try to pass is outright outrageous. Hugging as well is not bad but when you start touching your spouse inappropriately in public, you drive the people up the wall. It’s not a must you smooch in public as passers-by are looking on. You will only annoy people and make them uncomfortable.
If you’re already affected by PDA, maybe it is time you considered adjusting. For obvious reasons really.
