Dear readers: Just in time for Gay Pride Day, advice for 15-year-old fags and dykes from grown-up gays and lesbians.
Don’t be ashamed of being sexually inexperienced. It’s way hotter than being prematurely slutty. –K.
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I wish someone had told me at 15 that I could go for anything in life. In my loneliness I assumed that all kinds of things were off-limits to me: sports, fraternities, genuine friendships, the possibility of raising kids. I shied away from potential friends and mentors and wrote off professions and cities where I thought I wouldn’t be wanted. I missed so many opportunities. Don’t assume that doors are closed to you just because you’re queer. And when you come across the occasional one that really is locked, kick the fucker down. It’s your world. –Internalized It
When I was 15 I regularly got my dick sucked by men in the bathroom of our mall in Christian suburbia. At the time I was like a kid in a candy shop, shocked at my good fortune. I can only imagine today, with the advent of the Internet and even easier anonymous sex, that horny teenage boys have a virtual smorgasbord of sex with strangers awaiting them at any time. But I implore you not to do it. The resulting sexual compulsions, secretiveness, double life, shame, inappropriate sexual boundaries, etc, that were created in my teens haunt me today at 36. –R.P.
My advice for 15-year-old gay boys: Make friends with gay men of all ages. You can learn a lot from guys who’ve lived a bit, whether it’s about sex, relationships, cooking, motorcycles, or decorating your apartment. And unless you ask, the answer is already “no.” –Seasoned and Generously Experienced
