I saw a quote recently that said, "Friendship is born at the moment one person says to another: 'What? You too! I thought I was the only one!'" (C. S. Lewis) So, I got one question that I want to make sure I'm not the only one in... Have you ever felt just plain awkward?
Say, you and a person that you have barely met before are seated across the table from each other during a meal at a gathering. You are both enjoying (or supposedly trying to) the dinner of Sloppy Joe sandwiches. Neither of you are very talkative, so you just try to mind your own business--eating your sandwich. But with every other bite the sandwich remains true to its name--mostly due to the fact that you just got braces and are still getting the hang of eating with metal obstacles in your mouth. Pretty much, the whole time, you are thinking how you would SO not rather be there at the moment, and just as soon as you can make a dash to your 'forever pal', the words tumble out emphatically, "THAT was awkward!"
You probably have that one (or more) person in your life that is just...well...a bit quirky--no, more like totally awkward. They seem to always be saying nonsense, acting like a chicken who can't get their act together, with a sense of "humorous" (or not so much) ditziness. What usually comes to your mind when you are showing your best friend around the school and "that person" comes toward you, once again doing his annoying antics? "AWKWARD!"
Have you ever been performing, talking in front of a crowd, or anything else that had to do with being in front of people who are all sitting down looking at YOU, and something happened to make you goof up, fumble the ball, and flop "that one part"? What was your first response as soon as you stepped off stage and safely returned to the haven of your loyal friends? It probably sounded something like, "That was AWK-WARD!!"
We all make mistakes, mess up, and slip on key notes. But I remember the day my grandfather took me aside and reproved the "backward boasting". Backward boasting?? Wasn't that frank and honest humility in admitting my error?
Humility is essential. But what humility is NOT is drawing undue attention to the flaws of ourselves or those of others. There is nigh no extinguisher to the flame of inspiration, no squelching of noble challenge, no smothering of ignited passion like that of one who has "lit the fire" only to snuff it out, saying his "match got scratched". When the rubber meets the road, flaws will only be as big of a deal as we make them to be. Professional musicians know this to be true, stage presence is half of the presentation. This implies that the way a performer carries himself--whether it be with confidence and dignity, or timid skepticism of their own abilities--proclaims to the audience that he is either willing, prepared, and ready to give his best; or he is unsure if it is even worth his own effort.
Mistakes will arrise in some form or another, but the downfall is when we continue dwelling on them even after it is all said and done. Those who succeed are not those who never make mistakes; they are those who, when they trip up, get back up and keep running, not looking back except to analyze what they could do better next time. The chain that binds good-intentioned folks from soaring is consistently belittling their achievements and becoming entangled with every little "oops!" to the point that they can never rise above their blunders to live life for what it was meant to be.
Real life includes flops, embarrassing moments, fumbles and mis-haps, as well as complete failures. It happens to everyone. Not one person is exempt. But, there is a vast difference between those who make "ado about you" and those who use it as learning experience and quietly, simply, move on. Even though such things are sprinkled all throughout life, life is so much broader, so much deeper, far more important, offering much more potential than your hang-ups on mess-ups.
The question is, do you really desire to make a difference in this world, living life to the fullest potential that you were created for? Or are you comfortable enough to sit complacently, chewing on your "awkward hang-ups" with your pals? If, deep inside your heart of hearts, you long to be free, to live to the hilt this life you have been so graciously given, which will only last but for a season, if you are passionate about rising above the norm, then heed the call of virtue.
Virtue, as Webster defines it, is:
Acting power; something efficacious; excellence; or that which constitutes value and merit.
Virtue is strength applied with character for an intended purpose. What if our generation was more concerned about influencing the lives of others for the better than we are about our quirks? What if we were able to look beyond our minute flaws and see a world that is spiraling into darkness? What kind of world would we dwell in if each person had the strength and understanding to look past another person who is unsure of where he belongs in life, to see a fellow citizen in need of a listening ear, an encouraging word, a strengthening touch? Just what kind of people would we be if we had the maturity to put forth our best effort into everything we endeavored to do for the benefit of others, without dragging behind us the burden of lame excuses, petty annoyances, and frivolous hang-ups? Just think, what might this world look like?
The choice is yours: will you choose awkwardness and complacency, or a life of virtuous ambitions?
The choice is yours: will you choose awkwardness and complacency, or a life of virtuous ambitions?
"Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy."
~ I Peter 1:13-16 ~
