I Believe in Lesbians

Only twelve years old, young and unaware, I had never been exposed to anything other than my catholic school activities, friends, and my family. I never heard of blasphemy like drinking, smoking, or even sex. I especially never knew of one unique and exceptional being. Stereotypically, this magical person, inherently female, would wear clothing suitable for males. She would also cut her hair short, as if the long hair was disturbing her habitat. She also would never wear makeup and wear jean, cut-off vests over white boy t-shirts and wear bandanas. But what distinguished them from other females was that instead of loving a man, they would love other women.

I had been noticing some of these characteristics in my older sister, Andrea, Andi for short. Thankfully, she never wore the god-awful cut-off jean vests, but her hair became shorter and shorter and she wore baggy jeans and more conservative tops. So, as expected, I assumed my sister was one of these exceptional beings. Of course, I never asked her if she really was one of these women, because I heard that they prefer to be in hiding, or “in the closet” as some older people would refer to it, whatever that means.

I never had to ask her about it though. I was just sitting on my couch watching some television one day when she came and sat next to me with an oddly awkward expression on her face. Despite the eight-year age difference, we have always been so comfortable hanging out with each other, so I knew something was up. She was quiet for about a minute, and finally came out and told me she was one of these women. Her exact words were, “Amber, I like girls” and my reaction to this was a simple, “cool.” Honestly, inside I was jumping for joy that my sister was magical, and I think Andi could tell because she had a huge grin on her face. She asked if I really understood what that meant, so I told her I sort-of get what she’s saying. And then she told me that these creatures are called “lesbians.” “I knew they were real!” was my very first thought.

Now that I’m older and a little wiser, I understand a lot more about these beings called “lesbians.” I mean I’ve lived with one for nineteen years, so I would hope I leaned more about them. And the one thing that I’ve held onto is that lesbians are, indeed, magical; maybe not the way I thought they were as a kid, but in a way that can teach me. Lesbians exist, will live the way they see fit, and aren’t going to disappear no matter how hard some people hope they will. And honestly, I hope they never go away. Lesbians have taught me to never give up, to do only what makes me happy, and to just be myself. So, I believe in Lesbians: the magical and inspiring creatures that they are and will always be.