Monday, September 27, 2010

It Gets Better

Last week, Stephanie Perkins posted something that really got my attention. It was about Dan Savage and his It Gets Better Project which was started in response to the suicide of fifteen-year-old Billy Lucas who was bullied at school because he was gay.

You can read an article about the project here:
Showing Gay Teenagers a Happy Future


As part of the project, Dan and his partner of 16 years, Terry, created a video where they share their own experiences with being bullied and how they made it through. And the one message they want to get out to gay teens is IT GETS BETTER.

I am not gay, but as you know if you read my post last week for #SpeakLoudly, I did NOT have a positive high school experience. I was miserable, depressed, not cool, and there were many days I wanted to just curl up in a ball and stay that way forever. But this is what I want to tell you, IT GETS BETTER. I swear to you it does. Junior high/middle school/high school is one of the hardest things you'll ever go through and when you come out on the other side, you'll be a true survivor.

Stephanie said this, and I want to say it was true for me too. The day I graduated high school, literally, THE DAY, my entire worldview changed. It was like a thousand pounds were lifted from my shoulders when I realized, I never have to go back there again. I promise you, if you stick it out, you will feel this too. IT GETS BETTER!

If you know someone who is struggling right now, please share these links, and if you've survived high school, share your story with someone that needs to hear it!

Dan and Terry's video:

4 comments:

Christine Fonseca said...

This is a great post! Thank you for it.

Shannon O'Donnell said...

Another wonderful and valuable post, Valerie. Thank you. :-)

Lily Cate said...

I think it got better the day I realized that graduation was an inevitability. That someday, I would not have to wake up and head to that dreary, soul crushing place.

*Also not gay, just incredibly bored and frustrated by high school. Apologies to the 3 fantastic teachers I did have the honor of knowing during that time. You were great. The school/system was not.

Lacey J Edwards said...

Great post, Valerie! Although I find it very hard to believe you were not "cool". :-)

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