The Little Black Book For Guys: Guys Talk About Sex

Being Me and Gay

Being Me and Gay 

by Nick, 17 

I used to think being gay was going to make my life really hard. I was afraid to tell my mom and my friends. I thought I would get made fun of and people would hate me. I thought this when I was 12. Now I am 17, and I think being gay has made me a better person. Now, I don’t mean I am better than straight people. I mean that I am a stronger, more confident person. And because of that, I have great friends, and I am more involved in my school. When I was 12, I thought my world was over, but it wasn’t—it was just beginning. 

 I know what you are thinking. You think, how can being gay be the best thing that ever happened to you? Well, it isn’t about being gay; it’s about being me and gay and about learning who I am and how I can fit into this world. It’s about learning who really matters to me. It’s about learning to stand up for myself and about being proud. Being gay has helped me learn those things. I am me… strong, confident, loyal, and gay. 

Now, that’s not to say that everything is perfect. Some of the guys in my school think it’s funny to call me names. But the best thing about being confident is that the name-calling doesn’t make me feel bad about myself. It makes me feel bad about them and sometimes it makes me angry, but they can’t hurt me. They can’t take away my mom, my friends, or my confidence. I know who I am - do they? 

Me and my friends started a Gay-Straight Alliance in our school. We have a great teacher who helps out, and the vice-principal told me she thinks our group is just what the school needs. I belong in this school. I have a place and purpose. Once I felt that school was too much and that I didn’t fit in. Now I know I can not only go to school but also be a part of it. The best part is that now I know that there are other gay kids in my school. If there are more of us who are confident and proud of who we are, then maybe the bullies who still think it’s funny to make fun of us will lose interest. 

I know when I leave high school, I will have my mom, my friends, good grades, and my Gay¬Straight Alliance experiences to help me go to university or college, or travel around the world, or do anything I want to do. Being gay isn’t going to stop me from reaching my dreams. I am going to do all the things I want to do, and being gay has taught me that it is all possible.