So I wanted this week’s blog to be about people. Specifically, the people who have had an impact on my life in great and small ways. I’ve met many people over the years. Some were acquaintances or friends of friends while others are still a part of my life today. Looking back at the list I’d have to say I’ve met a variety of interesting people and each of them has had a part to play in shaping who I am. Obviously I can’t go on about every single person who has touched my life or else this would end up being a novel length blog post but I wanted to highlight at least a few.
It seems the first place to begin would be with family. I’ve been blessed with a very close and loving family and my mother holds the top honor among all the people who have shaped my life. She’s the one who has been my foundation and supported me through everything that has ever happened in my life. I’ve always admired her unstoppable drive and limitless love she has always shown me. She’s the example I could only hope to come to close to living up to. My mom has always been responsible and has an incredible work ethic. On the flip side she’s shown compassion, understanding and flexibility in dealing with situations which is probably the main reason my life has been as good as it has been. Backing my mother up are her brother and sister, my Uncle Mike and Aunt Gail, and their families, who have played a huge role in my life both directly through my experiences with them and the things they have taught me but also indirectly by being supportive of my mother throughout our lives.
I was lucky. Not a single person in my family has ever had anything disparaging to say about me being gay. If anyone had a problem with it they never let it show and never let it stop them from loving me and supporting me. That’s a gift not all gay people are fortunate enough to have and I am thankful every day for it. I feel confident that anyone in my family would be there to help me if I was in need and they had the means to do something. That kind of security that my family provides helps make each day a little less scary. Knowing that this group of loving, caring people have my back is probably the main thing that has kept me somewhat together over the years.
Moving on to the friends, there have been many over the years. Some closer than others, but all of them appreciated. The three R’s are the first that come to mind for me. Ree, Rick and Ron. Ree is like my soul mate. If I were a straight guy and she were a straight girl I think we’d have been an amazing couple personality-wise. With Ree words are optional. She and I could always just look at each other and have a conversation or laugh about something without a word between us and yet we both knew what was going on. I’ve never had a connection with anyone like that and no matter how many years or miles separate us she’ll always be special to me. Rick was the source of laughter, a commodity I desperately needed through the tough times. He had such a great sense of humor and was so responsible and irresponsible at the same time it made him very endearing. Unfortunately, our friendship hit a rough patch several years ago, and it isn’t as strong as it once was. Still, I count him as a friend and I wouldn’t trade any moment we shared for anything. Finally there’s Ron. Ron was like this piece I didn’t know was missing in my relationship with Ree. The three of us just seemed to “enhance” each other somehow. I told Ron I loved him the day I met him. Not “in love” just “love”. I don’t know how I knew… but I just knew that this person I had just met was going to be a friend for a long time. And to this day even though miles and years are between us, we still talk and I still value him as a true friend.
Not to be outshone, going back before the three R’s there were my childhood friends. Tony, Jamard, Jason, Landy, Sharika and Geran. To say they were just my old D&D buddies would be a disservice. These were people who shaped me during some of my most formative years. They are people I laughed with, cried with, and learned several valuable lessons about life. Tony was the first. A childhood friend whose mom was friends with my mom and who I am proud to say turned out to be a great adult, husband and father. Through Tony I met the others. Jason who introduced me to anime (yea HE’s the one who exposed me to Legend of the Overfiend :P) , Jamard, who keeps tabs on me to make sure I’m still a part of the world, Landy, who always appreciated my music, Sharika, Landy’s partner in crime he he, and the ever lovable and handsome Geran. This core little group provided me my very first social network as a child and young adult. They were people who accepted me eccentricities and all.
Moving to the present my social network is maintained by the internet due to my health issues. Through online gaming I’ve met some extraordinary people that I definitely consider friends. These are people who’ve made me laugh, listened to me lament the negatives in my life, and generally supported me despite my weirdness. There’s Miru, who reminds me very much of Rick. He makes me laugh constantly with his unique type of humor. He’s a source of joy in my life that I am very grateful for. There’s Nemo who prefer to remain mysterious. He doesn’t let us know much about him in the real world but I instinctively trust him. He’s intelligent and always makes you think when you ask him a question. I’d like to know more about him but he prefers his anonymity. Then we have Renee’ who is both witty and funny and it turns out has more in common with me than I originally thought :P . And last but not least Fea who takes the time to put together fun things for us to do and adds to the joviality of our gaming sessions. My gaming friends make up the bulk of my socializing these days and I glad to have them. While not a friend I made gaming, but someone I share my gaming with, I have Joseph who, like Jamard, is someone who keeps me connected to the rest of the world and appreciates me weirdness and all.
There’s been tons of other people I haven’t mentioned who have had tremendous impact on my life but as I said in the beginning I just can’t list them all and talk about each of them. Suffice it to say I’d like to think that every single one of them has touched my life in a significant way and I think for the most part I met and befriended some high quality people over my years. It’s these friends that give me hope for the world. These are the people I am hoping there are more of out there so that one day the world is filled with good, funny, caring people like them.
No comments:
Post a Comment