Looking back is beautiful. As queer people, we especially deserve reflection. We exist in a world where we see queerness celebrated, but also demonised. Where who you love, how you identify, who you are at your core can be a death sentence. Our journeys are simultaneously full of obstacles alongside our own crafted paths to happiness. Looking back allows us to remember what we have made it through. Our stories are not only for ourselves, but for our entire community – the survivors, the ones surviving, those still trying to make it to the other side, and those who weren’t allowed to make it.
I look at my toddler photos and want to cry – that little girl had no idea her life would be fundamentally changed because she fell madly in love with a girl. If I could meet baby me, I’d tell her how much love and community is yet to come. That who she loves will never matter to her best friends. The only thing they will care about will be the size of her smile. I’d pat her on the back for her cute crush on preschool Marcus, but keep it to myself that it won’t last long (none of her boy crushes will and that’s ok).