The Story of My Pride Roots
-By Amy
i consider myself a late bloomer, coming out at 20 years old. i had built up enough courage to tell my mom with a getaway car waiting in the driveway, but that was totally unnecessary because despite seeming a little confused, she assured me that i am her daughter and she will always love me no matter what. when she told my dad a day or two later his simple response was, “figures…” i suppose the lack of boyfriends and makeup and emphasis on sports and the outdoors was enough to raise his suspicions long before he ever heard the word “gay.” i have always had wonderful support from family and friends and fortunately for me, that never changed after i came out. i feel like i am one of the lucky ones who never had a harsh or negative reaction when telling those closest to me that i’m different.
i spent my first years fresh outta the closet learning how to be “a good lesbian,” wearing cargo shorts and ball caps tilted off to the side. i thought i was the shit, i thought i knew who i was and how i was supposed to dress, i thought i had it all figured out. what i have learned since then, however, is that you never really have it ALL figured out. things change, life evolves, what once was may never be again, or it may be only on fridays and wednesdays. sometimes i feel more feminine and sometimes i feel more masculine. no one gets to tell me how to dress or how to act just because i identify as a lesbian. don’t get me wrong, i still love sports and power tools, but sometimes it’s nice to wear something silky and put on a little makeup.
no one should feel like they have to fit in a box. sometimes you don’t even realize that you’re putting yourself in a box. this is why i feel it necessary to help guide the younger generation in whichever direction they feel most comfortable, regardless of societal pressures toward conformity under the facade of safety. too many queer people are made to feel worthless and wrong to the point of taking their own lives. i know that many others have suffered before me so that i may live openly and freely. i want today’s youngsters to recognize those that have come before them so that they may have the same freedoms, as well as to guide the next generation in whichever direction they need to feel safe.
come as you aresparkle and shine baby!
my journey to my sexuality
-grace
i grew up in a relatively large town in texas. my introduction to the lesbian world was very limited. i had several gay male friends, but i only knew two out lesbians and they were both so masculine (socially speaking) it was confusing. flannel, mullets, mechanics- the whole 9 on the super lesbo social stereotyping. and i was not into the whole flat-top mullet, car grease scene, aside from my love for fist fighting, punk rock, out drinking and out drugging everyone around, i was a feminine (socially speaking) therefore following logic there was no way i was a lesbian. yeah, i liked to get drunk and make out with