When I Grow Up, I Want to Be a Go-Go Dancer

12”×9”; Crayola crayons on cardstock; 2026. Living in my the gay paradise of New Orleans, I keep wondering how much of this life I could have imagined as a child. What did I always want for myself in gay spaces? What was I prepared for? And what am I only now learning I’m allowed to dream about? Between participating in a leather contest, go-go dancing for the rugby team, and singing in the choir, I’m considering my place in this community and how I want to be visible within it.

I’m experiencing an abundance of community and opportunity here, and I’m reaching for Crayola crayons to help make sense of it. There’s something about returning to a childhood art material while imagining new dreams, directions, and possibilities. Like a kid drawing himself as a firefighter and putting it on the family refrigerator. My ambitions look a little different, but the feeling is familiar.