Part of growing up is realizing that your parents are humans, too. It’s coming to the understanding that there is both good and bad that exist in all of us, and that the most common and important thread that binds us together is love. Not romantic or passive or selfish love, not love-love, but LOVE. To LOVE is to accept someone’s shortcomings, to forgive them their imperfections, and to create the space necessary to grow together. I’m going to tell you how I learned to LOVE my parents.
Read MoreThe summer in between my sophomore and junior year of college, Steppenwolf Theater in Chicago was doing a play called Ms. Blakk for President, which was co-devised by Tarrell Alvin McCraney and Tina Landau. It was about the true story of Terence Alan Smith, better known as Ms. Joan Jett Blakk, who was a drag queen that in 1992, when the AIDS crisis was still at its height, joined forces with Queer Nation Chicago to run for president against George Bush.
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Dinosaur shorts. That’s the last gift my grandma gave me on my eighth birthday. They were size 8 boy’s shorts with dinosaurs playing basketball complete with a matching tank top. I didn’t realize it at the time, but this seemingly small gift would become one of the most notable euphoric moments of my life.
Read MoreDespite advancements in society towards the understanding of queer identities, there are still a lot of misconceptions regarding the relationship between the concepts of “sexuality” and “gender” because of the way both have been interpreted in white western society for so long. One of the questions I often get about how these concepts relate is: how someone can label themself as nonbinary and gay/lesbian while using “opposing” binary pronouns? For example, a nonbinary he/him lesbian is a nonbinary person who uses he/him pronouns but is attracted to women and not men. I want to discuss why this identity and others like it are valid.
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We are so lucky to have Raei as one of our amazing counselors! At our 2018 and 2019 Raei has brought their expertise as a mindful outdoor guide to every activity.
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On August 29, 2020 we hosted our first ever virtual retreat! It was a whole day long event with peer led activities like yoga, indoor gardening, and pizza making together.
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This is Oscar from Boston, Mass. Oscar is a full time student AND full time rat parent to three (Angus, Hugh, and Tucker). At the Fall Youth Retreat in 2019, Oscar taught us all how to collage and everyone left the weekend with beautiful, individual collage journals.
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Henry is our former Program and Development Coordinator who has continued on with us as a counselor at our Fall Youth Retreats.
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