msheldon1431

[msheldon1431]

So as I mentioned in my first post, I have been through a lot in the past year. I was incarcerated for exactly one year. I am not going to go into details but I can say with certainty that it was my lowest of lows. Since I have been back home, I have been trying to focus on the positives that came out of such a negative experience.

It took me so long to realize that positive things came from that experience. Sure, it was the worst time of my life, but I made a lot of positive changes in my life. One of the biggest ones was being more transparent to my family, and friends. I am 29 years old, and I’ve known that I was gay for so long. I didn’t know how to handle it at first. Back then, around 2004/2005, it definitely was not as easy to come out as it is today. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still hard. We as a society have come a long way, but we also have such a long way to go.

I knew my mom knew that I was gay. I think that I used that as an excuse to not officially come out to her. “Well she knows, so that’s good enough” was what I constantly told myself. I spent years hiding my true self in fear. Fear that I wouldn’t be accepted. Fear about my job being affected because of it. All of it. I have been dealing with the feeling of being ashamed for it taking time in prison to come out to my friends and family.

For anyone out there who is still feeling scared to come out, I want you to know that it’s okay. It’s okay to feel scared. It’s okay to worry about not being accepted. Just know that you will be. You will be accepted, and you will be loved. You will feel so much better when you come out. Speaking from experience, it took me 29 years to come out. You’ll know when you’re ready. And when you are ready, and you do come out, you are going to love yourself so much more. The people who truly love you, will continue to love you.

Jail taught me a lot of things. But one of the most important things it taught me is that there are people out there who are so judgmental. There are people who are so quick to think they know you and everything about you. The people who truly care about you, and love you, are going to stick by you no matter what. You are loved, and always will be.

[msheldon1431]

This is me

My name is Michael Sheldon. I am 29 years old, and the purpose of this blog is to journal about my life, my thoughts, and my ideas. I have never blogged before, but have always wanted to. I have been through some extremely intense experiences in the past year, and felt the need to share my story. I hope to be uplifting, inspirational, and real. I will cover a wide range of topics ranging from coming out of the closet, living through this pandemic, spending a year incarcerated, and my passions in life and what I have learned from hardships. Thank you for taking the time to check out my page. I look forward to sharing my stories, and seeing all of yours.