I'm a gay man in his 40s and a very amateur composer of music.

I didn't set out to write a musicale anthem to queer questioning and self-discovery, but it kind-of happened. I actually wrote the music first, with no idea what the lyrics would involve. Something in the melody stirred teenage memories of confusion, horniness, anger, and hope, and then the lyrics spilled out.

The music won't be to everyone's taste – we have vocals, strings, and guitar in a musical-number arrangement – but I wanted to post it in case it does reach someone with whom it chimes. Particularly if that someone needs a message of hope.

(Aside: I can't sing. I also can't play the violin, cello, or guitar. I write all my music in MuseScore and various synthesisers play what I write, with increasing levels of accuracy. In the case of vocals, I use Cantai, an ethical AI synthesis platform; ethical in the sense that all artists contributing training data did so in full knowledge of the fact. However, it's still AI, and I know some people hold strong opinions. I wrote every note and every word. If you still object, then this song may not be for you.)