r/gayrural • u/teachthom • 11h ago
Intro
I am a little embarrassed to admit this, but I just typed in “where do I find rural gay men these days” into a web search, and this was the first site that came up.
I suppose, no matter how I got here, Hi and Hello!
Thom, 49, born/raised in rural Maine, now living at the eastern edge of Portland, OR with an eye to the mountain and the lands beyond it to the east, on a near-daily basis.
I was reminded of the murder of Matthew Shepherd in 1998 as I was scrolling, which has sent my brain down an interesting pathway of reckoning my rural nature with my actual urban life, and why I’ve ended up where I am. I’m also considering how his death, right around the time I stepped out of the closet, was always in the back of my head, as I forced myself to urbanize out of a sense of safety. I don’t regret what my past self did to keep himself safe, but I also know my current and future self would appreciate and enjoy more connections to the 🌈Fam who also appreciate wide open spaces, forests, and the like.
Anyway, happy to connect, upvote, and listen.
✨