Let’s backtrack a bit.

Aliko Dangote‘s daughter, Fatima and hearthrob, Jamil Abubakar shut down Lagos with their white wedding which was attended by lots of pretty important people. It was our very own royal wedding, of sorts.

The star-studded guest list included the likes of world’s wealthiest man, Bill Gates to Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, Genevieve Nnaji, Mo Abudu, Dr Sid and his publisher wife, Simi Esiri who was part of the bridesmaids; to music stars like Waje, DJ Cuppy; Politicians, VP Yemi Osinbajo and his wife Dolapo, First Lady, Aisha Muhammadu Buhari, former Governor of Lagos state, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Oil Magnate Femi Otedola, Senator Dino Melaye, Senator Ademola Adeleke and a host of many other dignitaries.

There were also music performances from some of Nigeria’s  most prominent entertainers ranging from, Davido, Wizkid, Alibaba, King Sunny Ade, Bovi, Timi Dakolo, Omawunmi to Seyi Law. The wedding ceremony would also not have been complete without Rolexes being gifted out as souvenirs.

The ceremony had many women wishing they were in the bride’s shoes. I had some friends tell me how they wished that they were Dangote’s daughter or at least lucky enough to be married off to someone whose family was that wealthy. Now, a lot of those people are the same ones hopping online to disclose their disgust at the situation.

Whether or not this story rings true and without delving into too much detail, we have a lot of work to do as a society.    While it is okay to admire the good parts of a person’s relationship and gain helpful pointers on how to make ours better, it is increasingly worrisome that we are increasingly becoming fixated on other people’s lives and what they’re doing to the point that it has an impact on how we choose to live our lives. We won’t get married to the nice guy because he doesn’t have ‘Dangote money’ even though he is more than comfortable. We’ll take loans to throw expensive weddings so that it looks good to people who we have no business trying to impress while we clamor to pay back those loans in the first few years of marriage.

Not everything seen on social media and the web are what they truly are. Like Uche Pedro of BellaNaija once so succinctly put it, people show you the highlights of their film reel on social media so if you live trying to compare it to theirs, you’ll get frustrated, because it isn’t even their reality. I hope we form a healthier relationship with how we take in information on digital. Love them from afar, take the lessons you can to foster a healthier lifestyle and relationships, however, stop the comparison.

Not all that glitters is gold – this phrase never gets old.