More than Pride

I woke up this morning thrilled about going to Pride once again. This will be my second one, and I'm still as excited as I was the first time. I'm sure part of that is related to the fact that I'm "newly gay," but I think it goes more to the fact that any and every opportunity to embrace who I am makes me happy. I have come to the conclusion that much of life is designed, even in small ways, to fit everyone into a box that makes other people comfortable. You are only allowed to be proud of things that conform to society's norms, because these are the things you get rewarded for. Yet, it's typically the things that people don't agree with that cause the most pride, because you have to find the strength to be proud despite the opposition.
When I was a kid, I was a bit of a tomboy. My mother didn't appreciate it though - she always tried to get me to "act like a lady" and "be more feminine." But I just didn't feel girly, and I wasn't really a fan of girly things. Being black, I encountered racism from people who found my skin color inferior and even appauling. I was gifted and a nerd, which didn't work well with other black folks who thought I was trying to be white or better than them. I grew up in the baptist tradition, but I felt like there was more to spirituality and God than what I was seeing. In general, I've felt like I was on the wrong side of a lot of things in my life. I am thankful that I have gotten to a place where I have embraced and am proud of all the various "wrong" parts of myself.
For me, Pride today isn't just about me being gay and being okay with it. For me, Pride is about self-acceptance in all aspects. It's about knowing that I am a beautiful creation who has nothing to be ashamed of despite how other people try to make me feel. People will always have an opinion about some part of me, and that is their right. The thing is, I don't have to live their opinion or allow it to poison how I see myself. The God that I love and serve has made me as I am, and no one can tell me otherwise. Why? Because I have a relationship with God that I have worked hard to maintain and whose voice I have fought, prayed, and struggled to hear. I think that we're so concerned about things that God isn't actually picky about but that have come about as a result of other people's issues, fears, and discomfort.
Pride is about breaking beyond the opinions/feelings of others and having the courage to be proud of something that other people abhor. The chains of fear that so often bind us are understandable in a lot of respects, and I wore them long before I acknowledged them. And as I was having some quiet time this morning, I could hear in my head "I hear the chains falling" - a line from a powerful song about breaking the chains in life. Now, the irony is that in one of the adlibs, the soloist mentions breaking the chain of... homosexuality. I should be offended, but I'm not. I understand that there are people who will believe until the day that they die that me being in love with a woman is a crime against God and humanity, that it comes from a spirit from the devil, and that it earns me a one-way ticket to Hell, because I am "unrepentant." And I'm fairly certain that I can't change their minds, but I can encourage those who wonder if they are truly the abomination that others tell them they are that no, you are not. I believe that the only chains that need to be broken are those of rejection and hatred that give people the false notion that their judgment of other people's lives means something.
So today, I say let's break some chains. If you have some prejudices or biases against a certain group of people, make steps to let them go, to see all people as people and not your stereotypes of them. Don't let your (or really society's) defintions and categorizations makes you put people in boxes, because that cause bondage for both you and the other people. If we were willing to let people be who they are and instead focused on living in healthy, respectful relationships, the world would be a much better place. So let it start with you. Be proud of who you are and encourage others to do the same.