Last summer, I discovered something shocking:

My 14‑year‑old daughter thinks I’m “unironically uncool.”

I don’t fully understand what “unironically” means in this context, but from her tone, I gathered it’s worse than regular uncool.

It all started when she begged me to film her doing a dance trend for TikTok.

I agreed partly because I’m a supportive father, and partly because I thought, “How hard can it be to hold a phone?”

Tragically, I learned the answer: very.

First, I accidentally filmed in portrait mode when she wanted landscape.
Then I used the front camera instead of the back camera.
Then I tilted the phone too high so her head disappeared from the frame.

“Dad! You’re literally doing the opposite of physics!” she groaned.

I’m quite sure that’s not how physics works, but I stayed quiet.

After 35 failed takes, she finally sighed and said:

“Okay, Dad… maybe just stand still and don’t breathe.”

So I did my best impression of a statue.

The video turned out fine until she added captions:

“Trying to teach my dad how to film 💀 pray for me.”

I still don’t know why there’s a skull emoji.

The video went mildly viral. People commented:

“He’s adorable but clueless.”
“He holds the phone like a boomer grandpa.”
“Give this man a medal for effort.”

My daughter found it hilarious.
I pretended to be offended, but secretly, I loved it.

Because for the first time in a while, she had invited me into her world.

We spent the afternoon laughing at comments, brainstorming new video ideas, and negotiating how many times I was allowed to “accidentally” embarrass her (answer: zero).

Later that evening, she came into my home office holding two cups of bubble tea.

“Thanks for helping today,” she said. “You’re not that uncool.”

High praise. I nearly cried.

Then she added, “If you want… I can teach you the dance?”

I hesitated. I’m middle‑aged. My joints make sounds.
But her eyes were bright, hopeful.

So I said yes.

We practiced slowly. Very slowly.
At one point she laughed so hard she fell onto the sofa - not because I was good, but because I was spectacularly bad.

But it didn’t matter.

In that moment, I wasn’t an immigrant dad struggling to keep up with Gen Z trends.
I was just a father sharing joy with his daughter.

That night, she posted another video:

“Teaching my dad the dance 💙 he tried.”

This time, the comments were different:

“Your dad seems so sweet.”
“Treasure these moments.”
“This is the wholesome content we need.”

She showed me each comment with quiet pride.

Maybe I’ll never be “cool” in the Gen Z universe.
But if being “unironically uncool” means I get to laugh with my daughter, learn her world, and stay in her orbit as she grows up.

Then I’m happy to stay uncool forever.