Image Description: A photo of a tall tree taken from below. The trunk is thick and extends upward with many large branches. The leaves are green and fill most of the upper part of the image.

This is a tree at a nearby park where I live that I have long since admired. I enjoy walking through this park as there is a lot of nature and it is very peaceful. Each time I pass this tree I always stop to admire it. It’s by far the biggest tree in the park and it has many more branches than most trees, laid out in such a unique pattern, almost as if they were steps leading its way to the top of the tree. It wasn’t until beginning this study that I ever stopped to consider why I feel such a connection to this tree. It feels as though each branch is its own path and there are so many different paths leading to the top. There are many ways this can be interpreted and it can surely represent anyone’s path through life. But I feel as though it can especially represent the paths of queer individuals. Our paths are much more wary and uncertain than those of most non queer individuals. We have to navigate life wondering who we can share our stories with and when we can tell them, uncertain who we will be safe to be ourselves around and who will try to suppress our self expressions. There are so many different paths we can take, so many different options. Some choose to not worry about anyone else and just be who they are. And that is so incredibly brave. Others fear for how they will be perceived or treated, some fear for their lives, so they stay closeted and suppress their feelings. Then others, including me, are a combination of both. Expressing themselves openly with those they know are safe, trusted people but hiding when it comes to others they don’t know as well, scared for how they’ll react. But no matter which branches we take to climb the tree, they are all connected to the center. All of our unique paths intertwine and help us realize that we are not alone, that others are facing the same challenges we are and that the one thing we all have in common is that we all are climbing to the top of the tree, metaphorically speaking. This tree is a beacon, a safe place, calling to all who need it.