Unlike other animals, we creatures on two legs have, if our environment lovingly fosters our most basic needs, the gift of self-actualization. This refers to the ability I have to experience and express my true self, wholly, with creativity and without shame.
The right to live as one sees fit, without harm to others or self, is something I hope for everyone. That is also the pivotal reason why Pride celebrations exist.
When I reminisce about decades of celebrating my LGBTQ+ friends and community members through Pride events, I become viscerally aware of multiple waves of varied emotions washing over me — deeply personal, inevitable, and to be cherished. These waves are a measure of a life lived, not to be hidden from or chastised.
Such emotions can be terribly painful, yet they teach us what we are made of. They can move us to change course, and sometimes encourage us to push through the tough stuff to the other side, to something better and more fulfilling, to wholeness.
Salt Spring Pride weekend is a time when I embrace the rainbow of emotions that my life experiences bring to the surface. It is a time to strive to be open to the experiences and expressions of others.
Here are a few examples of what and whom I try to honour during this time:
• For the loving community I am welcome in and share with . . . Deep Gratitude.
• For the homophobic and transphobic battles that have been and are still being fought daily by members of the LGBTQ+ community near and far . . . Deep Sorrow.
• For the incredible creativity I see expressed in this community through music, visual art, writing, dance, drag, fashion, burlesque and more . . . Deep Joy.
• For the friends I have lost to HIV and AIDS, many of whom were so very young and were ill before the inception of wholistic medical treatments and medications . . . Deep Grief.
• For members of the LGBTQ+ communities that are finally able to step forward and be who they have always been, in a more open and life-affirming way . . . Deep Love.
There is no doubt that this coming weekend is for celebrating. It can also be a good time to stretch our minds and embrace the awareness that we all share the same emotions and have the same basic needs that must be protected.
We all need to belong, and also to grow our empathy for others, even when we have differing life experiences. We can help ourselves and many others with the smallest of good deeds. How do we begin? How can each of us best serve our families, our communities and the communities beyond our borders?
On this weekend of pride and joy, and on behalf of our GLOSSI board and pride committee members, I wish to honour Brent Tynan, a wonderful man who epitomized creativity, empathy and community-building. Brent has left us too soon, and while we struggle with our grief at his recent passing, our hearts beam in the knowledge that he lived wholly, creatively and without shame.
Brent was treasurer of GLOSSI and the chair of Pride 2015. He made a positive difference in the lives of many and did so anonymously as often as he could. This year’s Salt Spring Pride theme,
“Pride and Joy,” was Brent’s vision as our chair before he succumbed to a final illness.
We are carrying on, taking his vision with us, with our varied emotions, knowing that he would want us to push through . . . to wholeness.
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