The cellphone is a beautiful work of art and has many abilities. Imagine carrying all pictorial evidence; music, videos, text messages and phone numbers that you have ever seen, heard, texted and called. All this in the capacity of a 6 inch screen that can conveniently fit into your pocket. That is what the modern cellphone can do and so much more. It is not just the internet. It is not just likes, comments and reactions. It is a whole world behind the capacity of your screen.

Social media platforms such as Instagram and Twitter use the “heart” reaction to “love” videos and pictures posted by users. Soon, Facebook joined them by introducing 5 reactions; “angry”, “wow”, “sad”, “love” and “haha”.

Personal favorite? L – O – V – E

I believe Instagram and Twitter created a revolutionary change in the way we depict the effect social media has on the world. See, the worldwide web is not just about bashing men or laughing at inconspicuous jokes that we probably will not remember a week from now. Social media is not even about cyber bullying. Social media is about spreading love.

Have you ever noticed how much love people with albinism, vitiligo, obesity, autism, cancer, disabilities and HIV are shown on the internet? But the moment we leave our screens, we face the real world and its cruel judgement.

We have created our own little world where we understand each other. Where your scars are seen as beautiful, where other females understand that breasts sag, stretch marks form and inner thighs darken. Where your body is seen as a canvas and all your imperfections, your scars and stretch marks are seen as art that tell your story.

A world where everyone relates to XXXTentacion’s quotes, where Alessia Cara heals, where God is a woman. Where the colour of your skin does not define you and men support feminism and stand for non-misogynist ideologies. Where every teenager suffers from depression or anxiety or some other form of social or mental disorder. A world where we relate to one another’s stories. This is not the real world. We know. We are OK with that.

Social media, and the internet as a whole, has given us a platform to voice our opinions and express our views. Even if you aren’t speaking to a specific person, the next person sees what you have to say and creates change within them. It has created long lasting friendships and in some cases, has shown us more support than the actual human race has.

We understand that we all need a friend and we are each other’s friend. We’ve realised that love doesn’t mean a male liking a female. That love can be a friend who understands who you are and what you go through and even when you’re at your worst, picks you up, dusts you off and says, “Try again”. It does not even matter that you may be thousands of kilometres away. What matters is, you’re here for me.

Maybe we need an escape route. A safe haven. The internet is just that.

So the next time you find your teenage daughter on the couch, playing Ariana Grande through her headphones on the loudest setting, please remember, she is not just lounging around, she is sharing love.