Be Your Own Fan

Dear Viewer

I want to tell you about one of my favourite life changing days.

In my teenage years, I loved famous people. Actually, I think I might have even worshiped them. I kept a flip file to which I would keep pictures of celebrities, cut from every magazine I came across. My favourite kind of pictures were the posters. The ones you find in the middle of a magazine. I intended to keep these Celebrity pictures for my bedroom wall one day when I finally get one. I learnt their names, listen to their music given the chance, and follow in practically everything they do. I was much obsessed with them, and I believed that everyone else was too. 

Point in time, I took the precious celebrity file to show off to my little. I was to brag to her that I have this amazing file filed with well know people who do great things. I was to brag about knowing their names, tittles, and life in the main. I wanted her to envy my file and be amused at a number of celebrities I know. I was so excited to show it to her and see her face because I assumed she doesn’t know them, or maybe she knows them , but not as well I do. So that was one for me and zero for her. I Started flipping through the file with her and I asked if she knew them with every page flip, she only recognised Chris Brown, Beyoncé, and Rihanna. I was not surprised. Everybody knew those three, they were the most common. Man, I was thrilled. I knew more celebrities than she did, so I threw it in her face. I had expected her to be very envious of me but instead she replied,  “You know them more than me for sure, but they don’t even know you exist”.

It was right there, at that moment that my life changed. I got hit by a precise reality, but I didn’t want her to know, so I acted corky. “yeah whatever “I replied. For a moment I hated her. In fact, I was so angry with her. First for not being thrilled with my precious collection of celebrities. Second, for not being delighted and astonished by the fact that I know more celebrities than she. And third, for being right. I didn’t want her to be right. Deep down inside I still wanted to keep my belief in celebrities, and it felt like she took that away from me. She made me see that it didn’t matter how many of these famous people I knew, they really don’t even know that I exist. What does me knowing them make an impact in my life. Why does it matter that I know them. For someone who is one year younger than me, she sure knew more than I did. I had to learn Pronto!!

Following that critical moment, I decided I want nothing to do with celebrities. Unless it is some sort of mind nourishing, and enriching, then count me out. Never mind that I used their names as mine sometimes. What a fraud I was.

Life began to ring a bell at 15 years old, on that day with my little sister. Thanks to her, I started realizing that these people I follow around are making a living of their own, making their things happen and I am worshiping them and follow their life stories instead of making my own. It was enough that I saw them on the TV and magazines doing their entertainment. That was the least I was willing to go to know them when things happened that day. 

Perhaps I didn’t emphasize on what I meant by “knowing of celebrities” . Perhaps I have you thinking that the only thing I knew was a name and surname. I FOLLOWED THEIR SCANDALS TOO. Who married whom, who was seen when doing what, the abuse, the fashion, the house, the drama, the gossips. I followed their life outside just the television and magazines. I went overboard, and I wasn’t the only one. It seemed almost everyone was doing it; hence I was shocked when my little sister wasn’t doing it. I guess she was one of the chosen ones who broke free from such madness could. It was my time to break free too. So, I did. I guess I needed a wake-up call, you should treat this as yours.

In 2022, the majority are still following celebrity gossip. Actually, there is more obsession now than there ever was with. This comes with an easy access. I would have thought that the larger part of the human race would see the zero point in it, but it seems there’s still just only two of us. This leaves me very puzzled. It leaves me in awe. I cannot believe how much people still care about celebrities’ lives. Why do we care so much about other lives lived. Why cant we let them live so we can be able to live too. We love that they create entertainment in numerous ways for us, and it should stay like that. There is nothing wrong about being entertained by a well know person, you don’t have to go as far as being impacted or affected by what they tweet. You absolutely have a right not to retaliate on everything they do. 

Technology is more advanced, so it has become even easy with smart phones to engage in life of others. You can find out everything there is to find out via press of a button. How one person can take the time to engage such that is beyond me, but that person ain’t never going to be me. It feels like I have wasted enough time on those people, I am not willing to spend a second more. They mean nothing to me. I mean nothing to them. You grow nothing by following celebrity life. Follow your own life. Be your own biggest Fan. Soon you’ll be searching yourself on the net, or you can live outside it. Either way, you will be living your own life.

Signing out.