I have dimples on my shoulders. Yep, that’s right, not next to my cheek bone or on the edges of my smile, but on my shoulders. Whenever I wear a sleeveless shirt people never fail to notice them. I’ve had people poke them, question if I’m actually human, and stare at them in amusement, like how a baby who’s crying in a “strangers” arms gazes at his mom when she walks into the room. Sometimes people even have me wiggle and shake my arms and shoulders to see if they’re truly real or if I’m somehow making small but deep pinky-finger- like prints appear on the clavicles of my shoulders. These rare placed dimples have been with me since day one.

The first time I remember really noticing them was with my best friend when we were seven at summer horseback riding camp. It was such a humid, cloudy day that if you were outside for more than twenty minutes you would step inside looking like Michael Phelps after he finished a four hundred meter race. As my group and I were swimming in the pool, suddenly the clouds were meshing together, the sky was turning the color of an African elephant and rain was tumbling down. I was at the top of the ladder ready to propel down the water slide when the life guard with strawberry blonde hair pulled back into a tight pony tail blew her shiny gold whistle and told us to get out of the pool. The camp counselors were grabbing kid’s hands to pull them out, some kids were screaming, some frantically swimming to the concrete edges of the pool then pushing themselves off them as their bodies slowly emerged from the water and eventually landed on the concrete and some just swimming along as if nothing was going on. I turned around in mind that to step down the ladder, but my best friend behind me pointed ahead and shouted, “GO!!!,” so I instantly turned back around and we zoomed down the slide together then swam to the pool steps. A burst of thunder crowded the air and soon enough us and everybody else were finally out of the pool and running towards the pavilion. I scurried around amongst all the pool bags on the old, worn down, wood benches to find mine and pulled out my Hello Kitty towel. Before I could wrap it around my bright pink one piece bathing suit with ruffled orange flowers, my best friend poked my shoulders and asked, “What are these?!.” I twisted and flipped my head back and forth between my two shoulders to see what she was poking at and spotted an indent on each shoulder.

That Friday afternoon when I slammed shut the back right door of our green Chrysler Town & Country van I had a clear intent of heading straight for the bathroom mirror to look at these indents more closely. On top of the washing machine I dropped off my rainbow stripped pool bag and purple and black duffle bag filled with a pair of riding boots, a horse helmet half a size too big, worn out blue jeans, and a plethora of dirty socks, chinsy art projects, muddy hair ties and horse hair contaminated t-shirts from the week. When I looked in the mirror I couldn't quite figure out what they were, if they were there all the time and why they were there, so I went to go ask my mom. When she told me that they were dimples and I was born with them I was as perplexed as a kitten coming home for the first time.

From then on every time my shoulders were exposed it seemed as if though somebody noticed them. My best friend would always point them out and poke them whenever I wore a sleeveless shirt, so from then on I always wore shirts with sleeves. I dreaded every time I had to wear a bathing suit or a dance costume. I covered them up with Band-Aids and would refuse to face backwards in the mirror. I thought they were the worst things that have ever happened to me. One day I even asked my parents if I could get them removed.

Back then I was so insecure about my shoulder dimples, but about three years ago I realized how unique they really are. I can wear whatever I want now and not worry about it. Whenever somebody notices or asks about them I smile and comment or answer confidently. I always have an interesting fact or a rare characteristic to share during awkward question and get to know me games. I can instantly make someone surprised and always have a go-to subject changer. I have something that very few people have, and I can embrace it.