Fake Poolside Photo Shoot Inspires Touching Open Letter to Young Moms

“Social media isn’t always real. Sometimes and often it’s a complete set-up.” These are the words of Jen Flint, a Florida woman whose inspirational message to young mothers went viral after she witnessed a fake mother-daughter photo shoot at a local pool.

Flint shared the story and message on Facebook, where she describes watching a mother stage several “perfect” photos of a “perfect” day at the pool with her little daughter. But as Flint explains, reality fell far short of the polished images that were probably posted to Instagram later that day.

“The mom, with her perfect loose curls tied up in a coordinating scarf, spent the first few minutes talking loudly on her phone to a friend while her daughter stood waiting to get into the pool,” writes Flint. “Mom ended the phone call and proceeded to spread out pool toys and sunscreen on a matching towel. Then after finding just the right angle and the right light, Mama pulled out her tripod and took a few selfies with her daughter. Little One asked to get in the pool. Mama said wait and then posed her daughter in front the pool, then going in to the pool and then coming back out of the pool.”

Once the photo shoot was over, the little girl was left to play in the pool alone for about 10 minutes before the unused sunscreen and pool toys were packed up. The main purpose of the trip seems to have been to capture a few Instagram-worthy snaps.

“I sat there thinking about what I’d witnessed for awhile afterwards,” writes Flint. “I imagined the photos she took being perfectly edited and posted to social media with a caption like ‘Pool time with my girly! #Makingmemories'”

And somewhere, she says, some young mother whose house and hair and clothes are a mess, will believe the lie and feel lesser for it. You can read Flint’s full message below:

Although the scene she witnessed clearly upset Flint, the point of her message wasn’t to “shame” or “call out” that mom. It was to send a broader message to all young mothers.

“What we see on Social Media isn’t always real. Sometimes and often it’s a complete set-up. It’s staged and filtered and it’s counterfeit,” writes Flint. “Mamas, don’t compare yourself. You ARE enough! You are amazing and the very best part is that you are REAL! Your dirty shirt and your messy house and your happy children are real and they are proof that you are doing it right!”

Since it was published on June 19th, Flint’s post has received over 192K reactions, 2.2K comments and 134K shares. It seems her message resonated.

(via Fox News)


Image credits: Public swimming pool by Nicola and licensed under CC BY 2.0

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