Tae Yoon: Life from 2006-2021

until recently, i've never really had this sort of goal, but i've truly come to realize that i want to eventually have kids and raise a family with someone. it's been a mixture of factors that has changed my views on all this, one of which would be all of the historic changes that are currently happening for lgbt people in america.

while growing up, the idea of getting married and having my own family never even crossed my mind. because i knew i was different, all of that just didn't seem like a reality for me so i at no time even considered it. this conclusion didn't result from any homophobic message i ever encountered, but it was just my natural state of thinking. i mean i never felt sad or bitter about it as a kid, because i didn't have anything to compare it with and say, "oh wow, other gay people have done that, so that means I can do that too." even for my age of 29, while growing up, there were no openly lgbt role models around. my house usually always had cable tv and i've been in-tuned with pop culture since i've been very young. i can recall watching mtv and being amazed by janet jackson's music video for "black cat" when i was in the second grade. my first magazine purchase was in the third grade and was a copy of "disney adventures" with jennie garth on the cover wearing a red dress. but even through all of that pop culture exposure, i can surely recall that i was never exposed to any gay stuff until ellen famously came out on her sitcom.

with that mentality, it's quite easy to be detached to the dream of having my own family like most people. i always just imagined myself with a career that i love instead, and everything else i wanted to accomplish was sort of secondary.

but things have changed. actually, they've completely changed.

since arriving in bangkok, i've been working closely with a lot of young people to help them with their own writing, and it's changed my life immensely. words can't describe how much i enjoy being around young people. they give me hope in the world, and have helped me look at life in such a new light. conversing with them is something that i especially enjoy. i simply try to talk with them in a way that i wish someone had talked to me when i was a kid, and for most of them, i've happily discovered that this form of communication remarkably does work. i often find myself wanting to just teach them all the lessons i've been fortunate to have already learned on my own in order to give them a strong foundation that will help them when they're off learning their own lessons. as adults, it's our duty and responsibility to allow young people to thrive and become who they're destined to be, and the old adage of "it takes a village" really does come to mind. from all of this, i've come to realize that i too want my own children to raise right and send off into the world. i think because of my own childhood and issues, i never really considered making this a part of my life. but now as an adult, i know that with my committed partner/soulmate, providing a loving and happy home for spiritual beings is a part of my destiny. and if that dream per se doesn't come true, i still want to be able to do my part to humanity and contribute to young people somehow.

with all of the historic changes currently happening for lgbt americans on top of President Obama recently going public about his thoughts on gay marriage, i now feel like i have new aspirations in life in addition to just my professional ones. being born gay in these present times truly does feel humbling and historic, and i hope to see the day where all of this isn't even an issue anymore.

as for now, i will leave you with this week's cover of the new yorker, which i think so aptly captures what's happening this moment in history.

(i thoroughly enjoyed this week's cover and it took it upon myself to produce these images to post on my blog with my digital subscription to the new yorker. all rights are reserved by the new yorker and will be removed upon request).