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Read This Before You Decide to Take Your Own Sunflower Selfie

Whether you hate them, love them, or you've taken a million of your own, selfies aren't just a fad - they're a part of life that's here to stay. However, not all selfies are made up of innocent, smiling faces trying to capture a worthwhile moment in their lives. There are many unsettling photographic trends currently worming their way through the selfie-saturated corners of social media. Today, we're going to talk about the newest one making its way through the digital world. People who take them call them "sunflower selfies". They may sound innocent and beautiful, but there's a dark underbelly to this trend which is causing real harm. And we're here to expose the controversy.

The Rise of Sunflower Selfies

Despite all odds, we as a society have managed to survive the horrors of #duckface and the dangerous #tigerselfie trend. We've successfully battled back the roving hordes of #girlsquad gangs assembling en masse. But we've been too complacent and too busy patting ourselves on the back to see the onslaught of this newest contender. All of the previous selfie trends pale in comparison to this hot new insidious one: the #sunflowerselfie.  

People are no longer content to re-blog and re-post pics of other people in sunflower fields to spread feelings of warmth, beauty, and joy on tumblr and facebook. They're sick of having to superimpose an inspirational message on top of sunflower photos that don't belong to them - or worse - don't have them in it. These days, thanks to things like "internet search engines" and "Google Maps", people can drive to the nearest sunflower farm and take their own photos and selfies. In reality, though, this shouldn't come as a surprise to most of us. Posting a sunflower selfie to your social media network is one of the best ways to help people realize that #lifeisgood and that one is truly #blessed.

Although the sunflower selfie is a new trend, it is nothing to sneeze at. Instagram has nearly 130,000 posts with hashtags like #sunflowerselfie and/or #sunflowerfields. Stock photo websites have more than 2,000 pages of results (containing dozens of photos per page) of people frolicking through the flowers and smiling at the camera. Despite how popular such photo-ops are, however, this admiration for sunflowers is far from harmless - and some of their victims have had enough.

The Problem With Sunflower Selfies

Most outdoorsy people know that the first rule of Nature Enthusiasm Club is that you always talk about Nature Enthusiasm Club, especially to people who hate bugs or make other excuses not to leave the house. But the second rule of Nature Enthusiasm Club is: "take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints". Unfortunately, this is the exact problem with sunflower selfies.

People are flocking to farms far and wide for an opportunity to photograph themselves - digitally or otherwise - with these beautiful yellow flowers. In some areas, especially areas where a farmer may be running the only sunflower field around for miles, too many people are taking nothing but pictures, and even those who leave nothing but footprints are causing a lot of damage. Sunflower crops are getting trampled. Litter is an unfortunately common problem.  Many areas do not have the infrastructure to handle the thousands of vehicles traipsing up and down the roads surrounding their land. And we're pretty sure that the exhaust from all those thousands of cars isn't very good for the plants, either.

But that hasn't stopped most people from trying to snap that perfect sunflower selfie. One large farm in Toronto, Canada was forced to shut down after thousands of people descended upon his farm like a giant horde of zombies looking for fresh meat. And that comparison isn't an artful metaphor from the talented minds or our genius writers, either. Those were the exact words of the farm owner, Barry Bogle: "I can only describe it as like a zombie apocalypse".

This sunflower selfie storm is much more than just an internet fad. Sunflower farms are being destroyed and the farmers' livelihoods are taking a serious hit. Will these amateur photogs ever realize the error of their ways, and leave these poor plants alone? Or will the trend continue until every last sunflower gets stomped out of existence and DAVID Seeds goes bankrupt? Well, as it turns out, there may be a profitable compromise for both sides.

Is There a Good Solution to the Sunflower Selfie Situation?

Everyone knows that entitled, selfie-snapping millennials are ruining everything in the world. Like, everything. And now that sunflower farms are in their Snapchat filter crosshairs, those at the top of the sunflower food chain must either sink or swim.

Believe it or not, though, this story actually does have a happy ending. Yes, it's true that millennials are killing virtually every industry they touch without a single empathetic thought towards the old, white, overpaid CEOs who are wallowing in eight- and seven-figure poverty because they're incapable of innovating their industry's outdated business models. But sunflower farmers, luckily, have resources at their disposal which are protecting them from sinking into this economic trap. As a matter of fact, things are going swimmingly for them in the face of this new trend.

Many of these green-thumbed business geniuses have easily figured out a way to cash in on this new cash crop of sunflower selfie junkies. Instead of balking the trend or trying to keep people away, they're embracing it. They're advertising their farms as open for business to any and all dendrophiles with a knack for amateur photography. Word is getting out that anyone who wants to take a sunflower selfie on their land is welcome to come by and do exactly that. And they're making a financial killing off of it.

Of course, they have rules and restrictions in place to conserve the beauty and the viability of their crop while giving the people what they want. Many farmers charge a small fee or sell a package deal to anyone who's interested in taking their own sunflower selfies. Those people pay the farmer a little bit of money for access to the farm and time in the field to snap their shots while the farmers reap the financial benefits. It's a win-win for everyone.

Some farmers have even gone the extra mile and opened up gift shops or other attractions to draw people in - the most popular of which are petting zoos. It's not uncommon for sunflower farmers to also own livestock. Fresh, free fertilizer from pigs and other small farm animals help grow some of the largest and most magnificent sunflowers in existence. Smart ranchers have taken advantage of this and opened up access to their animals for sunflower selfie takers and families alike to enjoy.

Unfortunately, there's one marginalized group of people who won't benefit from this happy compromise: the vocal minority of people who cannot stop themselves from complaining about annoying selfie trends. After all, how can one complain about farmers making profits from their labor in a society which has so flippantly dismissed its agricultural heritage for so long? How can one complain about a selfie-snapping sunflower enthusiast bringing their child to a petting zoo and introducing them to the wonders of nature? The sad fact is that they can't - at least, not without suffering the ire and social stigma which comes from being a wet blanket.

But don't worry, dear reader; they won't be suffering for long. We're pretty sure that the next annoying, obnoxious selfie trend is right around the corner. With any luck, this one won't have any societal benefits whatsoever, leaving social media contrarians free to complain to their heart's content.