You only live once. It’s a true statement, but lately, it has become more than that. 
#YOLO is everywhere on Twitter and Facebook. It has become an excuse for anything from wearing sandals with socks to running red lights.
I enjoy reading the ridiculous tweets and statuses as much as anyone, but after giving the phrase some thought, I realized that maybe there is more to #YOLO than condescending phrases and random actions.
I think that we should take the #YOLO trend and make something more out of it. Call me idealistic, but I believe #YOLO should be taken as encouragement to live our lives to the fullest and make something of ourselves.
However, there are some people who have used the phrase in a downright concerning way. I was perusing my Twitter updates recently and I came upon a tweet that read, “Killing yourself. #YOLO.”
I was shocked by this tweet because I know plenty of people who have been severely affected by suicidal thoughts and actions, and I don’t find it a topic to joke about. This is an extreme case, but I found it disturbing that someone thinks #YOLO could serve as justification for suicide.
Also, #YOLO should not serve as an excuse for reckless or inconsiderate actions. I found the following tweets in bad taste:
“Attempting a drive-by with a water gun. #YOLO.” The act of shooting a water gun is not illegal, but you could cause a lot of panic and harm if people believe you are using a real gun.
“Giving a homeless person an expired gift card to McDonald’s. #YOLO.” Ironic, yes. Humane, not at all, and another example of a prank I could see being done in the name of YOLO.
I hope that people don’t actually take these tweets seriously, and I am not saying that #YOLO is a bad thing. I just think that we should change our mindset about what #YOLO implies.
Why don’t I ever see tweets that say, “Paying for someone’s food in the drive-thru. #YOLO”?
Those are the kind of tweets I would prefer because everyone can use a little encouragement about how to live a fulfilled, generous life.
#YOLO could be used as the perfect springboard for promoting a more positive approach to living our lives. So many of the tweets I see now are condescending and rude toward others, and I don’t see why we can’t turn that around and make #YOLO a more positive trend.
Making the most of your life. #YOLO.
Baihly Warfield can be reached at warf3860@stthomas.edu.
#YOLO comes from a song by Drake, “The Motto” and if you look up the lyrics/listen it, its hardly what this article advocates.
Yeah, if you read the lyrics, YOLO actually has no apparent meaning at all. Amidst Drake’s deep and profound list of swear words, he seems to have just given us a more convenient way of stating a painfully obvious fact. YOLO deserves to be the joke it has become (but be a little tasteful).