Day of Silence

So Friday, April 16th, was Day of Silence. This day is to commemorate all of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender comrades in this world who are silenced by bullies, taunts, threats, etc. against their sexuality. I knew about this day before, but I never took part in it, because i didn't really understand what it was for. But this year, I decided that for one day, I would keep my mouth shut for the thousands of those who are forced to stay quiet.

And I have to say, that must have been the hardest thing I've ever completed in my life. I love to talk and I talk all the time. So staying silent for one full day of school was really hard. Others would say it's not, but communicating via paper and pen... It's not fun. Plus, during class discussions, I couldn't say a word or join in.

I realized that it's really hard to speak when others speak over you. I guess that's the gist of Day of Silence.

The thing that really pissed me off about being quiet was that people who were talking didn't even notice the few that stopped. And those that did merely made fun of us or gave us weird glances. The other thing that got to me was the fact that a few people would come up to me, realize I wasn't talking and why, and then say, "I support Day of Silence, but I don't do it because I'm not that extreme about it." That really pissed me off because the only way things have gotten done in this country is through extreme measures, like riots and strikes and whatnot. And not talking for a day isn't even that extreme at all.

Maybe I'm strange for getting so worked up about it, but people just need to understand and it's hard when they choose not to. I'm glad I'm one of the few that joined in this event because now I get the gist of what it's like. I already know I don't know exactly what it's like and I probably never will. But even trying to understand is an effort.

I guess I should stop now, since I have killer hiccups and I'm starting to not make sense. I'll have another post up soon though. Toodles.