You’re a Lesbian? No Problem!

Last week I found myself in a new course which, of course, equalled to coming out all over again. It’s a natural part of my life as a lesbian but it can be a little bit of an intimidating task when you know you’re going to be in the same class as these people for the next few months. I’m way too proud of who I am to let anyone else change that but you don’t want any hassle either. I’m sure most of you can relate to that.

I let it drop into casual conversation that I have a wife (civil partner) which surprised a lot of people. Why were they surprised? Because I’m a lesbian? Nope! It was actually because I’m so young. I’m 22 but I’m often told that I look younger. The fourth anniversary of our civil partnership is in September which was even more shocking to them. They were impressed by our dedication to each other at such a young age in these modern times and were genuinely happy for us because we have found true love. The fact that my true love is a woman was irrelevant.

Receiving such warmth and acceptance from these people really made me look forward to a future where those kind of responses are the norm. They were actually so accepting that they made me feel like there was actually nothing to accept in the first place. I was not seeking equality in their eyes because to them I’m already equal. Pretty cool, right?

Marriage Equality Vote Ireland May 2015

Just wanted to pop up a short post to let all of my followers all over the world know exactly what’s been happening here in Ireland for LGBT people. In case you didn’t already know, on May 22nd a public vote will be held regarding marriage equality. Campaigners are working hard at the moment in the hopes that the yes side will win and the no side are working equally as hard. Some amazing videos have been uploaded in the hopes that we’ll be able to appeal to the public to vote yes. I, like so many other LGBT people and allies, am desperately hoping that history will be made in May.

In 1993 homosexuality was decriminalised in Ireland so, really, we’ve come a long way since then but we still have so much more to achieve. Check out one of my favourite marriage equality promotional videos below and keep your videos crossed for us!

The Daydreamer Award / Thought Provoking Questions

1. Thank the person who gave you the award.
Many thanks to The Little Butch That Could!
2. Complete the challenge they set you.
3. Select a blog or blogs that you want to give the award to. The amount of blogs you select is up to you.
4. Tell them about it and set them a challenge.
Please include the rules in your post

TLBTC’s challenge for me is…

“When was the last time you changed your mind about something you believed strongly?”

I’m ashamed to say that I once thought that people didn’t change. I thought they simply got better at hiding who they really are or hiding the part of them that’s not so nice. I understand that that I may sound terribly negative or judgemental there but, hey, we are talking past tense here. I wrote people off very easily especially when I felt that their actions weren’t justified. If you’re wondering what changed then please, read on…

I realised that I was actually part of the overall problem. I was the one that actually needed to change. I needed to open my eyes to the reality of this world. I’m sure most of ye know that not everyone that does bad things is a bad person. There’s even often a very good reason why genuinely good people do bad things or even become bad people. Life can knock the good right out of you sometimes and leave you begging for empathy but when the world shares the view that I used to have it isn’t easy to pick yourself back up again. When it feels like everyone views you a certain way it’s easy to fall into that pattern. Well, it’s not like anyone else believes in you so your self belief runs dry too.

People can and do change. I heard a guy speaking on the radio that had just finished six years in prison and instead of wasting those six years of his life he used them to get a degree. After he was released he was given a chance and now has a very well respected position in a computer company. That one chance was all he needed and he used it to change his life completely. Criminals aren’t the only ones I have in mind right now but that guy was the best example I could think of. Sometimes people aren’t even half as bad as they seem on the outside. A cracked shell can be peeled apart to reveal something wonderful. It took me long enough to see that but luckily now I’ve seen how great people can be. 

I won’t nominate anyone for this award but if any of you would like to you can feel free to take part anyway. Thanks again, TLBTC, much appreciated.