Learning What It Means to Be a Man
A Fictional Story in Honor of Movember
Movember is an event that promotes awareness for testicular cancer, prostate cancer, and men’s mental health. This fictional story centers around the mental health aspect. The protagonist is an 18-year-old who discusses the importance of being vulnerable, breaking mental health stigma, and shattering male stereotypes.
Trigger warning: This story covers domestic abuse and might be too graphic for some readers.
If you could have your dream job, what would it be?
I read that question at least twenty times, tapping my pen in time with every tick of the clock. As I looked around the room, half of the students were conversing with their friends; the other half were either writing five-page essays or strangling their minds trying to answer the question.
Come on, Sam! Just choose something! my mind demanded.
I don’t know why it took so long for me to come up with an answer. I had interests and talents…at one point. I cracked people up without even trying. For the longest time, I would have said I wanted to be a comedian. I would have said it with pride and confidence! But now, I was ashamed of my aspiration. Hell, I was ashamed of myself.
