Rainbows. They mean so much to many different communities and groups of people. When you google them the first thing that comes up is that they are a symbol of peace and love. For the LGBTQ community, they became a symbol when an activist created a rainbow flag in which each color had a meaning associated with their culture. It’s still used today as a sign of pride and love not only in the LGBTQ community but also to show support for them. That is why I wanted to wait until pride month had concluded before explaining rainbows and their specific narrowed meaning to me. As major Lisa Frank fan and follower, I was a huge fan of rainbows growing up. (I say “was” like I didn’t buy Lisa Frank tattoos for a local cornhole tournament with a group of attorneys and convince a few judges to actually put the tattoos on within the last three years or so…ok, so I’m still a Lisa Frank fan.) I always thought rainbows were so beautiful. My elementary school had a huge rainbow mural across...
As a child, I was convinced that Ariel and I were one. We were the same person, and I was so sure that I was a mermaid that I would sit on my bedroom floor pretending to give my voice to seawitch, “Ah ah ah, ah, ah, ahhhhhh” as I lifted a yellow goldish bouncy ball into the air acting as if it was the visual of my voice lifting up to Ursula. During the summer, I would cross my legs at the ankles to make sure I could swim like a mermaid refusing to separate my legs to the point of sinking at times. I was going to be a mermaid. I was a mermaid. You would NOT believe how pissed I was when I found out that my mom wanted to name me Ariel and my dad crushed that with, “I’m not naming my kid after an antenna.” Aerial does not equal Ariel. Thanks, nerd. I kid, Dad. Love you… but like – COME ON In the midst of all my dreaming and planning (I am such a planner that I follow paper planners on all my social media) as an adult, I came across a maternity shirt that I quickly pinned on Pinterest...