Representation is so important to creating Asexual awareness. Chances are, if as an ace, one we’re to meet someone and reveal that they are “living without sexuality,” that will be the first interaction that person will have as an ace. The whole engineering of that person’s understanding of asexuality will be based on that one interaction. This is a astronomical quantity of pressure placed on the shoulders of the asexual in question.

Every asexual has characteristics about them that make them interesting outside of asexuality. It is best to reveal these features first before dropping the “A Bomb” and coming out as asexual. Who really wants to be known as “that asexual guy or gal” anyway. Being asexual should be the icing on the cake. Nobody’s going to hand out a Gold Medal to a persons declaring themselves asexual within one minute of meeting them. Believe me, I was hoping for that gold medal myself, but it just doesn’t happen in reality.

I have a very fortunate situation. My friends all know very well about my being asexual. When we meet a new group of people, eventually someone will ask about my status and one of my BFFs(I have multiple BFFs if that’s allowed) will bring up my asexuality, so I do not have to come out personally in most situations these days. This isn’t something that happened overnight. It took years for this luxury of being a known ace around town to occur.

When talking about asexuality, and I get asked about it a lot, I usually talk about what it means to me and how it shapes my life for a while before moving the conversation to the Ace Community. It has been very helpful being able to bring up the ace community when talking about the orientation because it let’s whoever I am speaking to understand that I am not some isolated freak of nature but rather a member of a growing group of freaks of nature.

In a few short months I have the honor of speaking on a panel comprised of asexuals at a large health fair being held in my city. People are coming from all over to be part of this and it will easily be the largest group I’ve ever spoken in front of about asexuality. I am confident in my ability to portray asexuality in a positive light and of my knowledge on the subject. All of my experiences thus far have prepared me well for this engagement. It is such a blessing to be able to use the gifts God have bestowed upon me to work towards the ace awareness that I am so passionate about.