I have another idea! (Ignore the "Reddit despises emojis unless they cost money" part)

Your upvotes are the only reward I crave...

I agree, but they should all be free and the awards given should show up on the person you awarded's profile and give them a certain amount of upvotes, depending on the type of award

yes

A good money maker for imgflip with the purchasing of awards.

I strongly agree, but they shouldn't cost money

Yes

i agree

If awards get added to imgflip, you're gonna see a lot of memes about wasting awards on reposts.