What Does Pride Mean to Us?

We are so excited to share this Pride shoot we did with Carly Landolt Photography and Heritage by Krista Jones. You probably remember us posting about this back in April. Both are insanely talented women that inspire us. They came up with this idea and brought it to life in the most magical way. Thank you both for including us!

What does Pride mean to us?

This is a question we ask ourselves often — especially as we enter June each year. For many, Pride doesn’t take up much space in their daily lives. For those of us in the LGBTQ+ community, it can be a tricky thing to navigate and something we think about often. We can only speak for ourselves and the journey that’s landed us to where we are now — and boy has it been a journey. Maybe one day we will sit down and share the full coming out story. That’s most likely a YouTube video because the twists and turns are too much to write. Until then, we want to share how we approach the word Pride and what it means to us.

Pride is a protest. It started out as one and will continue to be one until we live in a world that truly views us all equally. Unfortunately, that day is not here yet. Yes, we’ve made tremendous strides towards a better society but we have a long way to go. This is where the whole “Pride is complicated” enters the picture. One side of us wants to always rejoice in the progress and stay happy and cheerful — even more so in June. But on the other hand, we want to scream at the world for still making us feel like we don’t belong. For harming the trans community and passing laws that only take us back and erase the work that’s been done by those who came before us. Pride month only magnifies these feelings. We’ve spent so much of our lives feeling less than and unwanted. Not by our families but by the societal standards around us. Like something was wrong with who we were. Today we are confident and grateful for the love we feel for ourselves and each other. It’s taken a lot of hard work to get to this point. We want to live in a world where our children never question themselves because our society is open and loving. A world where the idea of “coming out” is so silly that our kids laugh at us when we tell them our stories. A world that embraces our differences  and uses that diversity to unite us all. One day this will all be a reality. But until then, we will continue to use Pride month (and every other month) as opportunities to share our thoughts and fight for a more inclusive world. Until then, keep on spreading love and being kind to those around you.