Proud Parent. I Support! by Alicia

As a teen mom at sixteen years old, I knew what is what like to be judged and looked at differently. Did I care? NO. I knew what had to be done: I finished high school, went to college, got the career...

This story isn't about me though, it's about my son Alex. Raising him and growing up together, we live the life of "free spirits." We have always been open, so when he came out and told me he was gay around two years ago, I knew... he was born that way.

I told him, "SON, BE WHO YOU WANT, LOVE WHO YOU WANT, JUST LOVE YOURSELF FIRST." I knew; did I care? NO. You see, I am now 33 and he is now 16 and WOW - what an amazing son he has become.

We live close to San Francisco, so I take him to all of the "cool" spots such as "The Castro District." We attend Gay Pride together and promise to never ever judge one another. We lift others up through their journey. I have parents that reach out to me on my Facebook with questions on how I dealt with my son being gay, and well... in my eyes, it is not dealing; it just is. :)

This is us.