BETTER THAN COOL!

I was blithely walking through my college commons when I noticed something. The people I was walking by were cool. It showed in the way they cocked their hips and held their chins. It was the way they posed with their cigarettes and how they slung their arm around their girlfriend.

At the same instant I realized that I was not, and was unlikely to become, cool. I was not the academic or athletic superstar, not artsy or stylish, or socialite. I was not cool, just an average guy.

I was surprised, utterly blindsided, by an emotional response. It was a sensation of ecstasy and euphoria. I burst into singing as I walked through the campus, “I’m not cool, I’m not cool! Thank you, God, I’m not cool!” I felt light and carefree! I was walking on air, full of exhilaration and joy to the point of being giddy!

I wasn’t planning on having an emotional experience that day. It just dropped on me. It still lingers. It’s a feeling of gratitude, of belonging, of security and identity.

Think of the strangling, crushing weight many cool people must bear, then think of the glorious implications of not being cool:

We don’t need to primp, pose, pretend, or play act to be accepted

There is no image that needs to be fed or maintained

We can relax and be ourselves!

Many do not score high on the Cool Index but they are perfectly delightful, precious individuals. In fact, each is an original creation in God’s treasure box. And that’s better than cool!