Thanks for reading! Indeed, it’s very different. One of the takeaways from that is when you don’t fit into a place, there are three options. You can try to blend in — and lose personality in the process. You can try to stay, to ignore institutional erasure and daily nuisances. Or, you can choose to leave.
I left my hometown right after junior high, and the country altogether after high school, with no intention to come back. Some (but not all) Polish gay men I know can relate to that. Is it better to leave for a better place and just be happy, or to unapologetically exist and maybe contribute to change in the place where you come from? The answer will always be unclear to me.