Coming Out Was Easy - by Zak Edwards

July 4, 2008

When people ask me to tell my coming out story, I always balk a little. Not because it was so horrible that I don’t want to relive it, but rather because coming out was so easy for me that there is very little story to tell.

I started to come out when I was 14 years old. I was lucky enough to go to a high school with a huge theatre program, and, having been a performer my whole life, it was a very comfortable atmosphere for me. Even though I was one of the first several people to publicly come out at my school, the vast majority of the students I came out to were tolerant, encouraging, and didn’t change the way the treated me in the slightest. By the time I graduated, the only people in the school who didn’t know about my sexuality were those that didn’t know me at all. I kept a big group of incredible friends, and even ended up as student body vice president and Homecoming king.

As for my family, my sexuality couldn’t have been less of an issue. I was out to my entire family by the time I was 16. My dad has worked in television since he was in high school, my mom has a degree in theatre, my oldest sister is an actress and graphic designer, and my middle sister is a hair stylist, so, needless to say, they’d all met a few gay people before. In fact, when I told my mom I was gay, she said that she was so proud of the person I was becoming, then paused for a minute and said, “You know, my friend Mary has this adorable son…”

Every time I tell my coming out story, I’m reminded of how lucky I am. I can only hope that, as homosexuality continues to become more and more visible and accepted, my story will become less and less remarkable. And for everyone out there whose story isn’t as happy as mine, my parents would be more than willing to adopt you.

I was born in Aurora, Colorado, which is a massive suburb of Denver. I lived in the same house until I left for college. I graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2006 with a BFA in musical theatre performance, and have been living in New York City since I graduated. I live in Spanish Harlem with my boyfriend of almost five years and travel all over to perform. A few of my favorite moments of the past few years include performing on a gay cruise AND a nude cruise (not at the same time) on Holland America cruise lines, sharing the stage with Rosie O’Donnell at New York’s City Center, and cementing my role as the biggest stereotype ever by adopting two cats with my boyfriend.

[The photo above is of Zak and his parents]

Posted by Tony Posted in Guest Writers Re: 'Coming Out', Posts by Guest Writers, Uncategorized