For a long time, I felt ashamed of who I was. I didn’t know what it meant to be me, only that to be me was to be wrong. I was rejected for speaking my truth, because it was not what anyone wanted to hear. I was rejected for who I am, because I did not portray an image that people wanted to see. I thought people could see an ugliness in me that I had to work hard to hide until I appeared flawless to them. But when I finally achieved what I thought was such perfection, I learned that, even then, I did not belong.
