Hug It Out!

Yesterday I wrote: "So friends, remember I am always here for you (No matter what stupid things you do). When you need a shoulder to cry on, a person to talk to, a person to hug, or someone to just be there for you, I am here for you."

And last night, I was once again reminded that I'm not totally comfortable with hugs but this definitely doesn't mean I won't be there when you need a hug. I think it's just that I'm not very experienced in the field of hugging. As a child going up, my family didn't much show much physical affection towards each other. This continued to be the case throughout most of my life; this is probably a result of the Chinese culture. This has its positives and negatives. I have always thought that I have always been very independent and have been successful due to how I was raised.

But it did come with its repercussions though. If you know me, I don't express my emotions (if I have any) very well. I have always had trouble with this matter; my brother has always called me a robot because oddly, he doesn't have a hard time showing his emotions. For people that know me well, they know I have an easy time talking to anyone about anything topic. While I don't express myself well, I'm a great listener (probably one of the best in the world). I have definitely come a long way though especially the past five years or so.

While I may be more comfortable with verbal expression, I have not become comfortable with physical affection like hugs. People say it's easy but for me, it's not. I feel excruciatingly troublesome by the act. I never know to go high, low, or the two possibilities of one arm high and the other arm low. Then after that step, you have to decide on the "tightness" of the hug and the duration. I feel like this is very similar to a handshake; this is probably the most significant aspect of the hug. This could make or break your relationship with this person.

It seems like the only time I give out hugs is saying bye to someone. So, I don't hug very often; it's actual quite rare (As rare as a first edition Charizard!). What makes it worse is that I am terrible at good-byes! Is there an actual proper way of saying good-bye to someone that you may not see for a while? If so, I certainly have not mastered it, I'm probably one of the worst at it. While practice makes perfect, hopefully I don't have to hug too many people good-bye in the near future. But for those I haven't seen in a long time (and will be in the Northeast), get ready for the last week of August! I'm going to hug it out from just pure happiness!