April is a Month of Celebration and Awareness
Fiesta conjures up bright gay colors and clouds filled with confetti. The promise of spring is a reminder that life renews and regenerates and we are intimately a part of the process; pruning, budding, blossoming and growing again .What an excellent analogy for life! We too need renewal and regeneration and to be allowed to blossom and grow, sometimes many times over, just like each spring. April is the month that feels the most like spring in South Texas; it is brief and unpredictable and summer comes quickly. I celebrate spring - the girls that shed their winter borne layers and start showing skin and the beautiful boys that have chosen hibernation all winter come out to play. It gives a whole new meaning to Good Friday. As if aware that spring has arrived, April is full of celebrations.
April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Let's look at the present opinion which researchers are questioning, "...does the rejection of the gay youth constitute child abuse?" LGBT youth who are abandoned by their families are eight times more likely to be homeless than their straight counterparts, six times more likely to report depression, three and a half more times likely to use illegal drugs and three and a half more times likely to participate in unprotected sex (Change.org, 2009). Isn't the abandonment of our LGBT youth directly responsible for these peculiarities and are these parents guilty of child abuse? In contrast, "...family acceptance protects against suicidal thoughts and behaviors, depression and substance abuse. It also offers a gateway to hope for LGBT youth and families that struggle with how to balance deeply held religious and personal values with love for their LGBT children," said Dr. Caitlin Ryan, PhD, Director of the Family Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University (eurekaalert.org, 2010).
April is Stress Awareness Month. As an economically and socially marginalized community, the LGBT population may face an increased amount of daily stress (mdquit.org.). Smoking is more prevalent among groups that experience high levels of stress; so have you re-examined your New Year's resolution to quit? Where are you with your resolution this spring? What can you do to renew your commitment? High stress leads to a host of physical and emotional symptoms; LGBT people often struggle with depression, anxiety, trauma and self-acceptance as a result of facing ongoing discrimination over their lifetimes (heretohelp.bc.ca). So take a walk, ride a bike, breathe, laugh and play; the stress you save may be your own.
April is STD Awareness Month. In order for you to know your status, you must get tested. Syphilis has made a huge resurgence. If you are sexually active and not practicing safe sex 100% of the time - START DOING SO NOW! Make your primary care provider aware of unsafe sexual practices so he can test for the appropriate STIs (sexually transmitted infections). We are responsible for our health, so celebrate the promise of spring by taking control of your sexual health.
In addition, April is National Poetry Month. In closing, allow me to pay homage to the written and spoken words by sharing a poem-prayer of mine:
Stop, take a breath; long, deep, steady and slow.
Be still, find the space to speak and beware, always choose.
Renew in me a right spirit, Oh Lord.
Create in me a pure heart.
As I step, surely I find my way.
Breathing in the best of me, I see the best in you.
May the poet in you always be with you!
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