maybe not.

Believe it or not, I’m a fan of Project Runway. Go ahead, make fun of me. I’m the type of girl to wear tee-shirts and blue jeans every day, yet for some reason I like a show about designers, fashion (which I know and care nothing about), and clothes. I don’t even like to shop.
Anyway, a part of the last episode struck me hard. It echoed and rattled around in my heart, shaking me loose. The challenge was to create a fabric and a design that told a personal story. This guy, Mando, made a bright and colorful fabric covered in plus signs. The whole episode, he was being very cryptic about the symbolism in his design. He simply said, “It tells a story of who I’ve been, who I am, and who I will be”. Finally, in front of the judges and all of the other designers, he decided it was time to reveal his secret. The plus signs stood for being HIV positive, which he has been for the past 10 years. Apparently, his parents had no idea – until he broadcasted it, obviously. Mando is 32 years old. So since he was 22, he has been lugging this heavy secret. He didn’t even feel confident enough in his relationship with his parents to share that he is sick.
And you know what?  That really sucks. First off, he couldn’t even get support from his own parents because they wouldn’t understand. Then, nobody else even knew about it, so he couldn’t be supported from anywhere else. Having to carry that bottled secret around is too exhausting. If he knew his parents wouldn’t understand, I wish he could have trusted someone else with the information sooner. If your own family isn’t available to help, then who is?
The thing is, I’m sure he’s not the only person with this problem. There are people all over the world, all over our schools, all over Farragut, that are afraid to share what’s really  happening in their lives. So, they have to fight it alone – either because nobody else knows, or because what should be automatic support doesn’t help them.
He said he was afraid to tell them because he was raised in a very Catholic household, where that type of thing was not tolerated. Excuse me, but shouldn’t that only make them more understanding? Or have I misinterpreted Christianity for the past 17 years?
Be someone supportive and understanding today. Be the one left standing when the smoke clears.

New favorite song: Carry Me – Jars of Clay