Nov 222012
Thanksgiving is a rough holiday for many current/former homeless queer youth who don’t have relationships with their biological families. For the kids of Roving Pack it’s no exception:
“QYRC opened again today… Gus asked if I was ok over Thanksgiving. I was going to say I was fine, but then I started crying….”
– Roving Pack
For everyone reading today who is struggling please know that you are not alone. Let me repeat that again. You are not alone. If you are in the states you know that today is a rough day for many of us. It’s a day when society tells us that we should feel ashamed of who we are because our family doesn’t look this iconic image of what family “should” be. Take care of yourself. If you’re struggling, I suggest staying away from television and radio (they will just be full of ads that will make you feel worse), go to a park, take yourself to a movie, take a bath, write a story, talk to a friend, or counselor, eat cupcakes, draw pictures, workout. Essentially make time even if it’s just five or ten minutes to honor that this is a rough day and that you deserve to do something that makes you feel good about who you are. There are thousands of us for whom to varying degrees today is rough. Take care of yourself, and eachother, reclaim the holiday with chosen family if you can, and remember that you’re not alone. This feeling of alienation is part of what inspired me to write Roving Pack – I wanted to create a book that told a different story than the one we’re fed. I wanted a book full of the struggle and pain so many of us have known biological family to be, but also have it be a story of community coming together building family and holding each other in whatever way possible to get through everyday, especially holidays.