This just in: Awkwardness isn't just for middle schoolers anymore.
Last night, I watched a 145 ibs, rail of a full-grown, white male dance around someone's living room to a cover of Elton John's 'Tiny Dancer' in a completely serious manner. As he pranced around, the lights sent flares of glare off his glasses, and his tucked in shirt slowly began to untuck itself from all of the unexpected movement. After the song was over, he stopped dancing, tucked his shirt back into his pants, adjusted his glasses and returned to his seat like nothing at all had even happened.
There's a word that society likes to use to describe the situation and the individual above. It's a word that many of us are terrified to be labeled under and a word that many of us fear, but I think we all know what word it is I'm talking about: The word 'awkward.'
For many of us, myself included, we would be terrified to be the individual losing their mind to 'Tiny Dancer' in a room full of people we don't know, unless of course, we had been prompted by too many alcoholic beverages (in that case, bring on the awkward). But for most people, being sober and being awkward at the same time are deep social fears. I know for me personally, if I'm ever labeled as being awkward, or ever worse socially awkward, I rethink my every move from the interaction and make sure to do whatever it is I just did again. However, what if being awkward shouldn't be something that we fear, but instead was something we owned.
The truth is, my best friend is awkward (Shoutout to you, Bryce Rowland).
My best friend is awkward, and I mean it as a total compliment when I say it. I don't know if he's ever known that, but anytime I call him awkward, I'm complimenting him. He has a personality that breaks down social barriers, allows him to be friends with anyone and be friends fast and a true personality of himself that he's not afraid to put on display for others to see. He runs the risk of potentially being awkward so others don't have to feel so awkward, and I love the guy for it. He embraces himself and owns his awkwardness; he doesn't avoid it or fear it, and I consider it a part of who he is. It's awesome to watch and a really cool picture of grace, in a weird, awkward sort of way.
Awkwardness is a little of something we all have in us to some extent. Technically, the definition of awkward is 'causing difficulty, embarrassment or being ungraceful, also being abnormal,' and really, it's impossible for any human to lack those traits in some areas of life. Whether it's socially, athletically, musically or personally, we all have something in our lives that is difficult, causes embarrassment and that we aren't the 'graceful' at, making it not look normal when we participate in that activity. Personally, mine is social awkwardness; I'm extremely unnatural at meeting new people, so when I have to, I clam up and get awkward; however, I don't think this is something I'm supposed to fear anymore. I think it's something I'm supposed to own.
Whether you're the guy dancing to 'Tiny Dancer' in a room full of people you don't know, the person who hates meeting new people for fear of what others will think of you or even the person who hates participating in athletic activities because of lack of experience, own that awkwardness that is bound to come out. Embrace who you are and don't be scared of looking unnatural because there's no doubt that the people you're around are unnatural and awkward in their own ways too; they're just not owning it like you are.
-Cliff
Cliff's Note: Make awkward the new awesome.
