Since moving to Texas, music has been very cathartic. But I do feel like people pay more attention to you here. It can be hard to make friends as an adult. I’m Latino and gay, but there haven’t been any instances where I felt like I wasn’t accepted. And people are very proud to be from this state. I’m not used to having friendly neighbors. I genuinely felt threatened until I realized they were just making conversation. I remember the first time I went to a grocery store here, someone started chatting with me. People are really friendly here in Texas.
But I didn’t see myself staying there - I felt like my personal growth needed to happen outside of where I grew up.
My family in Southern California is a big part of my life. I got lucky, because once the pandemic hit, the company began furloughing employees at the lower level. I work for a major airline, and an opportunity opened up here in Dallas to become an instructor.
