Where are you going?
Went to a DMB concert this past weekend at Alpine Valley in Wisconsin. Was absolutely amazing. I haven't seen Dave and company in like a year, and we were 5th row center on the second night. Being in Minnesota has offered me a lot of time to think and think some more. Beyond the dissappointment of Karen Minnis' actions on SB 1000, we now have legislation that very well may decimate the cultures of people of Central America. Yes, I mean CAFTA. Not only is it detrimental to our own economy, it is probably the most poorly written piece of legislation I've seen come from this administration. Alas, 3 more years. It doesn't sound like that long, but wait: in one night the hopes and dreams of the queer community were shattered with the passage of measure 36. Now that I'm graduated I feel more confused than I ever have in my life, and the current socio-political state isn't helping... thus my question (and the title of a DMB song): where are you going?
Dear Mom and Dad
Dear mom and dad,
Leaving home this time was the hardest it has ever been. Often times leaving the quiet respite of Alaska signals the continuation of an adventure, or in this case, the beginning of a new one. On the way to the airport I wasn't able to say much because it was clouded by the sadness and emotion of a tearful goodbye. I cannot remember feeling so much like a small child in a huge world then I did on that ride. For the first time multiple experiences of the past few years set in and I began to feel something strange inside. We all know where I come from: that I am as cocky as I am smart and as fearless as I am frightful. For the very first time in my life I was able to grasp how big the world is and how I fit into it, however small I may be. I am back in Portland a changed person. I feel like I am standing on the tallest legde in the world, getting ready to take the most important plunge. I have never been so scared in my life. Yet I am excited. Not with the uncontained excitement of a child on christmas day, but the cautious and benevolent excitement you only feel a few times in your life. This time, my departure from Alaska signals a greater shift in my life. I will never be a kid again. I will always be a child, a son, and a brother. But never again will I be a kid. That's hard for me, but also exciting. Of course I am worried about where my future will take me, but now I am thankful. You have both prepared me to take that leap into life's unknowns, and for that I am eternally grateful. I want you both to know how much I love you and wish I could be home with you right now. Unfortunately, I have to be an adult now. You are my heroes and my role models. I love you
