#colager

Definitely! I was a super “late bloomer” as far as romantic attraction went (I currently consider myself queer and somewhere in the ace spectrum).

In high school I had some attraction to both male and female individuals but my attraction never seemed to fit the way other young girls described their crushes. I desperately wanted the attention of those I liked. I wanted their eye contact and kind words and a pat on the shoulder, but I didn’t desire kisses or sexual things. I was worried I was “not right” and made up a fake boy crush for conversations where pushy girls wouldn’t stop teasing and asking questions. Looking back, I honestly think I was just incredibly and deeply lonely.

During a long phase of attraction to a girl the year above me, I worried about being lesbian. My parents are gay and at the time there was massive political discussion about the rights of gay families and the morality of gay people having kids. I was really worried how my being gay would reflect upon my family. Many anti-gay people feared that gays would “turn their kids gay” and that it would be a horrible thing if queer families raised queer kids.

Hello, my name is Laura. I am thirteen years old and I have two moms. It’s pretty cool having two moms. They are amazing, and I wouldn’t wish to have anyone else as my parent. The only thing is that I sometimes feel a struggle being in this wonderful community from the confusion and taunting of my peers. Although it only happens occasionally, some of the responses I get when I tell people that I have two moms can really hurt. The responses range from ecstatic, to disgusted, to confused, to nothing at all. People ask me, “Which one is your stepmom?” or, “Did your dad pass away?” These questions are okay, but they can still hurt me. Another response I get is people telling me how sorry they are that I’m stuck with two moms and that I don’t have a dad. These are also the least of my worries. The comments that really hurt me, though, are the ones said without thought.

Last year, when I was in sixth grade, I received one of the worst comments I have ever heard. He told me that he would kill himself if he had two moms, that it was the worst thing in the world. Hearing that having two moms is weird and horrible really destroyed me. I knew it wasn’t true. My moms are funny and smart and help me through the toughest of times. I don’t know what I would do without them.

I want to practice writing joy. I want to learn to excel in sharing the funny memories. I want to develop a flair for expressing all the ways my family is the best thing that ever happened to me.