The Story of Awkward

by R.K. Ryals

“That awkward moment when you realize running away from life doesn’t mean life won’t pack its bags and follow.” ~Peregrine Storke~

The bullying, the struggle with my weight, my father’s yells, and my mother’s indifference … they’d all made me into the person I was now. Rather than weakening me, they had made me stronger.

Our past doesn’t define us. We get to decide whether we learn and grow or stay stuck. My past use to scare me and made me feel shame, but the things I went through made me a kinder, loving and more compassionate adult.

“Because avoiding the things that hurt us doesn’t fix us,” I told her. “There’s only so long you can hide from life. Don’t worry about being enough for Prince Dash. Worry about being enough for you. In the end, that’s what counts. He or someone else will love you more for that.”

“True courage isn’t about being brave. It’s about being real. It’s about being able to admit our weaknesses so that we can turn them into strengths.”

It became a journey that taught us to embrace ourselves, to love what was unique about each of us. It taught me that I wasn’t just awkward. I could make mistakes. I could love, and I could be me without feeling wrong for being that way.

True courage isn’t about being brave. True beauty isn’t about being beautiful. True courage is about being real. True beauty is about being happy.

Awkward taught me to embrace my awkwardness, but it was Foster who taught me that it was okay to strive for something better. To be better than what I am. There is no such thing as perfection, but there is such a thing as success. Awkwardness is about embracing what makes us unique and using that to make us different, better.

Even if it isn’t your kind of fairytale, I hope you walk away from it with a smile and remember to embrace what makes you awkward.