This is such a powerful, raw, and liberating piece. Your vulnerability and the way you weave together your personal journey with sensuality, faith, and self-ownership is utterly magnetic.
I love how you bring the reader into the moments of tension—both external, like the dressing room scene, and internal, as you reconcile years of conditioning with your unfolding sense of self. The details are vivid, the tone is unapologetic, and the segmented prose structure adds an emotional rhythm that amplifies the poignancy of your story.
The “Wafer, cracker, loaf” section is especially striking, encapsulating the spiritual and physical fragmentation that so many of us wrestle with in our journeys toward wholeness. It’s beautifully juxtaposed with the bold, unrelenting reclamation of your body and spirit in the later parts of the narrative.
Thank you for sharing this “baby” with the world. It’s a gift. May your fierce, sensual self continue to flourish—and inspire others to embrace their own.
For no known reason, I’ve wondered often today if there was even one singular member of your former congregation who has wanted to stay in touch, if for no other reason than to affirm your value and worth to her/him/them. My experience would make me think that probably you would be on everyone’s shit list, but what if the Universe promoted just one…….
But why would I want to affirm my worth to them? I'm free from that. They are comfortable in their lives which made people like me hide.
Some have tried, freaked out, and ghosted.
There are multitudes on the periphery that did not feel like they belonged in faith communities, and I'm interested in engaging in those disenfranchised groups.
Well, thank you. 🤗 That segmented section would not stop gnawing in my mind until I added it.
I hope the piece communicates the fierce desire to own, commune, and embody a self that wants to be known.
This is such a powerful, raw, and liberating piece. Your vulnerability and the way you weave together your personal journey with sensuality, faith, and self-ownership is utterly magnetic.
I love how you bring the reader into the moments of tension—both external, like the dressing room scene, and internal, as you reconcile years of conditioning with your unfolding sense of self. The details are vivid, the tone is unapologetic, and the segmented prose structure adds an emotional rhythm that amplifies the poignancy of your story.
The “Wafer, cracker, loaf” section is especially striking, encapsulating the spiritual and physical fragmentation that so many of us wrestle with in our journeys toward wholeness. It’s beautifully juxtaposed with the bold, unrelenting reclamation of your body and spirit in the later parts of the narrative.
Thank you for sharing this “baby” with the world. It’s a gift. May your fierce, sensual self continue to flourish—and inspire others to embrace their own.
"To thine own self be true." You are. Thank you for this wonderful article and poem.
Very true, Thomas. Thanks for reading.
For no known reason, I’ve wondered often today if there was even one singular member of your former congregation who has wanted to stay in touch, if for no other reason than to affirm your value and worth to her/him/them. My experience would make me think that probably you would be on everyone’s shit list, but what if the Universe promoted just one…….
But why would I want to affirm my worth to them? I'm free from that. They are comfortable in their lives which made people like me hide.
Some have tried, freaked out, and ghosted.
There are multitudes on the periphery that did not feel like they belonged in faith communities, and I'm interested in engaging in those disenfranchised groups.