I want to introduce myself. I am a single lesbian that came out of the closet to myself at the age of 25 I had to stay in the closet at work for fear of losing a job (which I did lose because I needed to be openly gay). I come from a Christian background where being gay is a “sin” and a “choice” one makes incorrectly. I have spent most of my life single because I didn’t learn how to date when I was young and mostly because I didn’t find what I was told about dating working for me. I also suffer from depression. I know part of my depression has come from hiding who I was from myself. A person should be able to be themselves and not a person that meets other’s expectations. I went to a counselor to try to figure out why at the age of 23 I was still single. I still remembering her asking me: “Have you ever thought you might be gay?” My response still resonates in my life: “No, it’s not allowed!” That was over 23 years ago and I am still fighting with the fact that I am a lesbian. (Oh my, I really used the word Lesbian — it’s still a bit scary to use it). Then we researched why it wasn’t allowed. Most of that research said it was allowed! Wow, it took a while but yep, I am gay. I have been all my life. I was born gay. I know that there are those that condemn me for being gay. I shouldn’t care, but I do. I am glad that none of my family walked away or disowned me. I do know it’s not a topic most of my family will talk about either. We get together and talk about health, and other things. I share about my church and all my church does. I don’t get asked if I am dating or not. I am not sure why, but it isn’t a topic that usually comes up. If you are reading this and just coming out to yourself or the world, this is a great time to do it. There are gay examples on TV so that you can see what same-sex marriage is like. There is a ton of stuff on the internet. I didn’t have any of that. Which is why I had a friend that sent me a book to help me learn about the “Gay World”. I found a church that helped too. This also takes some hunting, but there are churches out there that just take people as they are. I went to Gay Pride Atlanta and found organizations and groups that could help me meet lesbians and other gays. So, I shall keep trying every day to declare and use the word lesbian to describe myself. It isn’t easy, but I will continue every day to write home and share with you some of the things I have discovered about be me in this world