joshua, age 12

I had a bumpy childhood, raised by a single mother suffering from multiple personality disorder. My best friend knew I was in love with him, and he was okay with that, as long as I didn’t “try anything funny.” I bounced around foster homes and group homes until I was fifteen. That was when I came out, and it was the best decision I have ever made. After I came out everyone was so kind and loving toward me.

Today I’m a professional ballet dancer, and I’ve been partnered with my husband and best friend for seven years. I’m currently attending grad school and making a documentary that follows a group of LGBTQ kids in their early teens, to give a voice to the younger generation who are experiencing these things. I love being gay, and I wouldn’t want to be any other way. I hope my film helps kids come to that place of acceptance in life a lot sooner than I did. Someday, being young and gay will be as taboo as being young and short or having freckles. And I want to make that day come very soon.