It Gets Better.

Billy Lucas
Asher Brown
Seth Walsh
Tyler Clementi
Raymond Chase

What do these names have in common?

If you don't know, then you should. These are the names of lives lost in the recent weeks; young lives of people who felt as though they were not free to be themselves - who were sadly discouraged from or even punished for their unique and perfect individuality - and extinguished their precious lives because of it.

It should shatter your heart whenever you read these headlines. These are our children and they're crying out for our help with strangled voices.

We, as a society, have let them down. We try to change these children instead of just loving them. We turn a blind eye to the harsh treatment they get from their peers as if it is at all harmless.

We are a part of the problem.

LGBT youth are more than three times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual counterparts. For young boys, this number escalates even higher. Family abandonment and peer bullying all tragically play a part. These are kids who are punished for how they feel and who they perceive themselves to be.

And it's got to stop.

High school is not a great place for anyone who is "different" - but the kicker is that we're all different. Gay or straight, male or female. It's an unrealistic conformist atmosphere that says you have to be like everyone else or else you have no value.

I'm here to tell you that you have PLENTY of value.

I was once in your shoes. As the survivor of childhood sexual trauma, I considered the unthinkable when I was only 14. Thankfully my best friend, who would come out to me when I was 18, called right before the moment of no return. He saved my life, and my friendship probably saved his.

I know how alone you feel and how horrible that is. There's nothing worse than to doubt yourself or believe that the world would be better off without you, especially in regards to things beyond your control.

I know how easy it is to believe someone when they consider you unworthy. Unlovable. Without purpose.

But you do have a purpose. We all have a purpose. And you have the opportunity to turn it all around with each precious breath that you take. I know it seems impossible but you are not alone. Just at the end of your fingertips are people who love you and would be completely devastated if you weren't here anymore. It's the scariest thing to do but you have to reach out to find out who those people are.

Maybe, like in my case, you'll learn that you're the lifeline to another person. That your presence in the world is what keeps them from considering the impossible.

No matter how different you think you are, your life has meaning. I don't care what the bigots say, who cannot see you beyond their own limited expectations. That's their failure, not yours. You were created and you were designed to love and be loved. That begins with you loving yourself enough to be uniquely you. Because that is a gift to the world, even if it doesn't seem like it.

You are beautiful, no matter what they say.



There are people out there who recognize how beautiful and precious you are, and are willing to love you though the seemingly endless storm. We will not judge you for what you're not, we will love you for all that you are.

Your life is a gift, and if you hang on you'll discover that it is worth the scary, lonely moments. It sounds trite but it gets better. And many times it gets fantastic.



So if you're scared, if you're feeling alone, unloved and unworthy...

Reach out.

I know it doesn't seem like it, but it really does get better.

Be alive to see it.