#For context I'm 24 but I've known these neighbours since I was like 12

[aroandawkward]

My post in which I mentioned learning that my 13 year-old neighbour identifies as aroace kinda blew up, so I thought I'd talk about it a bit more. Like I said in that post, I felt really emotional about the fact that my neighbour knows about those identities at such a young age. But I also felt emotional thinking about the fact that I am proof to her and her family that being aroace isn't just a kid thing, that aroace adults exist, that they can lead full lives, that they aren't necessarily miserable loners (although of course I know that being a miserable loner wouldn't invalidate someone's identity!). Just by being here as a 24 year-old who identitifies as aroace, by being casually friendly with my neighbours, by being very tentatively and awkwardly open about aroace stuff, I might make it a little easier for the parents next-door to understand and support their aroace daughter. And that thought means so so much to me.