Since telling my Mum that I considered myself ace, I already noticed that she was a bit… too interested, if you want to say it like that. Asking for “signs”, or how being ace feels like… I tried to answer her to the best of my ability, giving her links to websites that would explain better as I ever could.
Today she said, very quietly, “Do you think I could be ace, too?”
And I said very carefully “If you think it suits you, I don’t see why not”
And my Mum, my strong, self-confident Mum, who never once has ever felt uncomfortable in her own skin as far as I know, beamed in relief. Relief.
Because she never knew. Because getting married young and bearing children for her husband (meaning sex) was expected of her. Because everyone gave her the feeling as if something would be wrong or broken about her if she didn’t want, didn’t do that.
Because her whole life long, she thought there was something wrong with her.
I’m honestly torn between feeling happy and relieved for her, and angry that humanity has such trouble with showing some understanding to those who don’t fit in the boxes society has designed for all of us.
Update: My
Mum was getting ready for bed when I noticed her humming loudly around her
toothbrush and I asked her what the good mood was about.
She beamed
around a mouth-full of toothpaste and said, very proudly and deliberately, “I
think I like that, being ace.”
And continued
on with her brushing, humming a bit louder.
(Or in
other words, I’m more than a little bit teary eyed.)
I had almost the exact same conversation with my Mom. We were talking about the LGBT acronym and explained that it’s LGBTQ and that some people add the PIA at the end as well. And she asked me “What’s the a?” So when I explained it she said immediately “Me. That’s like me.”
This is why I get so mad at people who think this is all just trendy bs, people just don’t have the vocabulary or permission to describe their lived experience.
This is the most wholesome thing I’ve ever read, bless this post 🙌🏼
I’ve had a family member from my parent’s generation ask me about being bi and come out as bi to me. The relief in their faces after decades of not understanding is amazing.
everyone thinks they’re a former gifted kid if that tells you anything
I hate those posts because most of the people who reply to them weren’t even former gifted kids
You’re only a gifted kid if you took a proper psychiatrist administered IQ test and score over 130, and IQ stays the same for life. Real “former gifted kids” are just gifted teenagers/adults now, with or without problems or motivation, because ACTUAL gifted kids are gifted for life, no matter how much they underperform in the present or future, because IQ doesn’t change. I was a gifted kid and I’m gifted now. I had horrible grades then and horrible grades now. But my IQ? GIFTED. ALWAYS.
I’ve seen a lot of people talk about how they want to be okay, feel better, and I’m gonna drop some knowledge on you right now. Just the fact that you want to feel okay means you’re getting better. You saying ‘this isn’t where I want to be in life’ means you are looking forward, looking to get better. And just that little bit of motivation means that you are okay, because you’re still alive and still looking forward. You haven’t lost hope yet, and I’m sure that’s better compared to where you used to be. I believe in you. Keep getting better.
queerlybeloveds 