You are Someone’s Odd Duck

Have you ever looked at someone and thought to yourself: huh. Something’s a little off.

Nothing bad, really, just … different.

Not quite right. Not quite normal.

Maybe they’re a little eccentric in some way.

Perhaps you’ve said to yourself (or, *cough*, your spouse) “well, they’re certainly an ‘odd duck‘”.

Have I got news for you.

The concept of being “not quite right”, “not normal”, or “a little odd” is all based on invalid comparisons to a nonexistent standard.

There’s no such thing as some absolute applies-to-everyone “normal”. At best there’s “average”, I suppose, but even that implies only some statistical center from which we all deviate.

In other words we’re all half a bubble off plumb in some aspect of our life, and all in our own, unique ways.

I can pretty much guarantee there is someone out there — perhaps a friend, an acquaintance, a stranger, or even a family member — who’s looked at you and said to themselves “Well, they’re certainly an odd duck.” You’re just being you. There’s nothing you’d recognize as warranting a second thought.

To them something about you is just a tad off-kilter. A little off. Not bad, just different. Not quite right. Not normal.

Before you judge others on their eccentricities, remember that you have your own, whether you recognize it or not.

Embrace the unusual waterfowl, in yourself, and around you.

We’re all odd ducks.