Of course, I always knew who he was... I mean, “Love Shack” and “Don’t go breaking my heart”... I’m a kid of the ‘80s... (ok, yes, technically the ‘70s)... that smile and those dance moves were hard to forget once you’ve seen them! And, in my teen years, RuPaul made it so natural and so easy for me to accept that we don’t all fit in little boxes and that is ok for a man to put on a dress and a wig and perform... especially when the performance was so full of joy and made me wanna get up and sing and dance!
But... I never knew “who” he was. Not until bestie S told me to watch his “Drag Race”. I binge-watched all ten seasons non-stop! It was around Christmas 2018, at the end of a year when I had lost my partner and best friend, my family, my dignity, my self-esteem... a year that broke my heart in a thousand pieces... but, episode after episode, it was the queens who got me out of my misery! Who made me wanna pick myself up and move on! Not because listening to their stories, heartbreaking and tough and cruel life stories at times, made me think that I had it easy... no... it was because no matter what, they picked themselves up and moved on! Because they were strong, fierce, full of love for life, full of talent and wit and kindness and truth and always ready to support each other even when they were competing against one another!
And that’s what real women are like! Regardless of what a patriarchic society wants us believing, no, we are not against one another, we are together, we stand up for each other, we shine brightly and we fight tirelessly every day! Like me and my girlfriends! Like the girls in “Drag Race”! And yes, it did take RuPaul and his “Drag Race” and all the queens to teach me that and I will always be grateful! Because it literally changed my life! And, yes, he’s right that we are all in drag and it’s ok as long as we know it...
It took me another year to write this... a year of struggle, exhaustion, sickness, loneliness and hard lessons... a year when ever so often I would find myself feeling so low that only watching “Drag Race” would put a smile on my face... but, another year that I survived! I guess, a “thank you” is long overdue... So, thank you RuPaul Charles! For your truth and smile and generosity and wisdom and joy of life! And your dance moves! From the bottom of my heart, thank you! Needless to say, having you in my life (yes, I have you, you don’t know it but I do) has been better than the best pair of shoes I could ever possibly possess!
But... I never knew “who” he was. Not until bestie S told me to watch his “Drag Race”. I binge-watched all ten seasons non-stop! It was around Christmas 2018, at the end of a year when I had lost my partner and best friend, my family, my dignity, my self-esteem... a year that broke my heart in a thousand pieces... but, episode after episode, it was the queens who got me out of my misery! Who made me wanna pick myself up and move on! Not because listening to their stories, heartbreaking and tough and cruel life stories at times, made me think that I had it easy... no... it was because no matter what, they picked themselves up and moved on! Because they were strong, fierce, full of love for life, full of talent and wit and kindness and truth and always ready to support each other even when they were competing against one another!
And that’s what real women are like! Regardless of what a patriarchic society wants us believing, no, we are not against one another, we are together, we stand up for each other, we shine brightly and we fight tirelessly every day! Like me and my girlfriends! Like the girls in “Drag Race”! And yes, it did take RuPaul and his “Drag Race” and all the queens to teach me that and I will always be grateful! Because it literally changed my life! And, yes, he’s right that we are all in drag and it’s ok as long as we know it...
It took me another year to write this... a year of struggle, exhaustion, sickness, loneliness and hard lessons... a year when ever so often I would find myself feeling so low that only watching “Drag Race” would put a smile on my face... but, another year that I survived! I guess, a “thank you” is long overdue... So, thank you RuPaul Charles! For your truth and smile and generosity and wisdom and joy of life! And your dance moves! From the bottom of my heart, thank you! Needless to say, having you in my life (yes, I have you, you don’t know it but I do) has been better than the best pair of shoes I could ever possibly possess!
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