Dear People Who Apologize Too Often,

To the people who apologize before/after they say something they think is strange, do something they think is weird or sometimes apologize for absolutely no reason, please stop. You are not apologizing for what you did; you are apologizing for being "weird." You are apologizing for being you. This is something you should never apologize for because being weird is okay. Being normal is boring. Ironically, the word "weird" means "fate or destiny."

Too many people try to be normal, pushing their real personality down, not letting the world see who they really are. If everyone was the same, nothing would be different. If everyone was normal, there would be no progression in the world. Everything would stay the same.

Too many people say being different is weird. In high school, the people who are different are shunned, but those are usually the people who are the best people to know at college. Too many of my friends have said to me, "this may be weird, but..." or after they do something, "Sorry, I know that was a strange thing to [say/do]." It's frustrating.

Recently, I expressed my frustration to a group of peers. I thought I was strange for saying, "It's okay to be weird! It's not okay to be fake." It seems like that's the world we live in today with Photoshop, thigh gaps and appearance obsession, I explained. However, behind every thigh brow, airbrush or whatever else, there's a personality. I wasn't sure what my peers would do. They paused and then all of a sudden started snapping their fingers, thanking me for saying something that so many people seem to miss.

Many people say college is the last place to be weird. The real world means professionalism, they say, and although that is true, college is not where your story ends. College is just the beginning, more training for your lifetime. Cap and gown does not mean you have to become superficial. In college, you do not just take classes and learn things about your profession, you make new friends, go through new experiences and learn more about yourself as a person. You shape your personality, a personality that does not just go away after college. Embrace who you are.

At the end of the day, you have yourself. Take away other people, work, materialistic goods; it's important to be able to know who you are. It's important to know it's okay to be who you are. Stop apologizing for your weirdness, your differences, your personality. Be you. It may sound cheesy, but it is a true and important concept. Love yourself and please...stop apologizing.