Maybe I'm Meant To Be Uncool

It seems there are trends in what is “cool.” The trend right now seems to be getting tattoos, running marathons, and stepping aside from blogging, facebook, and the internet for awhile.

None of which I have felt called to do.

There are so many moments in my life where I have felt “uncool.” I’ve either felt awkward and clumsy in my own skin, or left out of a certain group or niche. And yet as I look back to “there,” from where I sit now in my “here,” I realize that what the world terms as “uncool” is instead simply “unique.” 

There is something that should be applauded, in the people who rebel against conforming to society. They are the “divergents” (as in the movie.) The people who think for themselves, know their boundaries, and refuse to be defined by a certain image or stereotype.  Ironically, these same people often don’t see the beauty in their ability to be one-of-a-kind and different.

I think the world is afraid of those who are different. They don’t always know what to do with someone who doesn’t drink, swear, or endorse the latest “politically correct” thing. It scares them because it makes them take a look at what they themselves are doing. It may be wrong, it may be right – but often looking deep inside is painful. And people don’t like doing that. They want to stay on the surface. Live on the surface.

So, yes. Maybe I’m meant to be uncool. I don’t see the need to do something simply just to join in, unless I simply and truly desire it for myself, or feel that God has called me to that specific thing.  And maybe there is a certain freedom that can be found in being “uncool.” A certain bit of rebellion that in today’s world….leans toward the good and narrow road instead of the risky and edgy one.

The tables have flipped.

So I’m okay with being uncool. I’m okay with being different. I want to stand out. I want to be noticed. I want to be fully me, and feel alive inside knowing that I’m living in a way and manner that I can be proud of. That doesn’t mean that just because someone else chooses something that they are wrong. Maybe they are indeed called to step off the internet for awhile to get their priorities and boundaries in focus. Maybe they really do enjoy running marathons (kudos to them!) But for me – I pray I will never simply join in on something just so that I can be a “part.”

I don’t want to conform. I don’t want to be a sheep. I want to be a lion. And I want to know my own voice when it roars.