This Poem Perfectly Illustrates How It Feels to Come Out

The road to self acceptance is paved with uncertainty and the foundation upon which we ultimately build forward our new lives as LGBTQIA+ persons.

Coming out is the crucial turning point in all of our lives, one that defines bravery and growth. Denny Quinteros, a queer poet, accurately captures the multitude of emotions felt while in the closet and after in his two-part poem, "Closeted."

Closeted: The Same Parts

I stand in a dark room filled with fear and resentment

This stems from the idea that speculation of my identity may hurt my well being 

This dark room soon enclosed me for plenty of my childhood year and became a sense of need 

Hiding felt like chains around my body but also protected me like armor 

I desired to be free but when I tried to reach the door in front of me, these chains pulled me down onto my knees

I can feel people on the outside trying to look in 

Their eyes filled with acceptance and protection but mine were to armored to be vulnerable 

They struggled to get inside and see but I struggled to get out and perceive a new view

A knock resignated  from the door, almost as a reminder 

An alarm, that I would snooze because I was not ready to wake up 

A lump in my throat began to build, filled with words I would not have the strength to hold

Everything came up roses, and I threw up a garden 

I could only lay in the flowers and say such relieving words

"I am gay" 

Closeted: Vulnerability

Vulnerability

Being open meant being free

Being free meant being vulnerable

Vulnerability meant having cuts all over your body that bleed crimson red without restriction 

It wasn't pain that I felt from these wounds but liberation 

The same door that compressed me for so long became a new path of life for my future

The first step outside this new path exulted the pure adolescent nature that was embedded into my body 

Letting out a deep secret so massive relieved weight on my shoulders that pushed me down as I reached for my truest self 

I could look at my reflection and finally recognize the person looking back at me 

I was a stranger that I had the pleasure to get to know 

This is what coming out feels like