Savannah and Ash
I (she/her) met my partner Ash (he/him) in September 2020 at Target, where we both worked at the time. We immediately became good friends, and one night in November 2020 changed everything. After our closing shift, he asked me to go to Wendy’s with him to get frostys. Soon enough it was 4 in the morning, and we were still in the lot of our workplace, giggling and gossiping the night away. I’ll never forget the butterflies I felt that whole night, and how swollen my cheeks felt from laughing so much! We both wished the night would never end and even talked about getting breakfast. Unfortunately for us, the cops crashed our fun, and we fled the scene once we saw they had started their trespassing sweep!
After we both drove off, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. How quickly our chemistry was evolving, and how I had never felt so comfortable with someone before. It was like we had known each other for years, as he played all my favorite songs, and we fed off each other’s humor.
Once we were both home, he texted me, and told me how cute my laugh was. I knew he was just flirting with me (my real laugh is not cute)! My whole world shifted instantly with Ash. I felt happy again, and like I was coming home to myself. After another painfully long week or so of flirting, chaos, and rumors swirling around the store, we got together on November 22, 2020.
We’ve been going strong ever since! He was supposed to move to Los Angeles shortly after we started dating, but ultimately decided to stay here much longer, which I’ll always be grateful for. One of my favorite memories I have with him was when we went to his hometown on the east coast. We went to a gorgeous beach and spent the day searching for crabs together in the sand.
Ash is easily the most lovable person I’ve ever known; to know him is to love him. He’s extremely selfless, compassionate, and thoughtful. I will always admire him for his authenticity, creative mind, and radiant energy. He is a filmmaker, an activist, and a charming person all around.
What does queer love and queer joy mean to you?
Queer love to me means being in a relationship where both of us empower each other to be our most authentic selves. This love has allowed me to unlearn and decentralize heteronormativity and as I mentioned earlier, come home to myself. I always knew I was queer growing up but never felt comfortable or safe enough to be myself until dating another queer person.
Queer love also means celebrating each other everyday and continuing to learn about one another as you evolve together. Ash is a transgender man and has shown me so much about living authentically in your queerness, and the significance of giving yourself the love and patience to grow.
Queer joy to me is resistance. Those targeting us want nothing more than for us to be silent. They want us to be miserable, and they want us to live everyday in fear. Every moment that a queer person can live their lives fully as themselves, is an act of resistance. Every laugh, every accomplishment, and every happy moment is valuable. Queer joy is something that they can never take away from us, and something that is so beautiful to live in.
What does it mean to you to be in a queer relationship?
I feel immensely fortunate to have Ash by my side during these times and to exist as a queer couple. To be a part of his transitional journey, and to be able to show him love and support throughout every day brings me immeasurable happiness. Our guiding light lately has been us imagining our future together and holding onto that.
We understand the significance of advocacy and being present with our fellow queer friends and community members. I know our LGBTQ+ community is an incredibly resilient one, and our love has always prevailed over hate brought to our direction. Spreading this love to ourselves, our partners, and our collective is the focus right now. Whether it’s shopping at queer-owned businesses, listening to each other in times of need, or celebrating each other’s victories, we must continue to hold recognition and affirmation for one another.