Ever since I was a little boy, I've always had very feminine tendencies. I think I displayed tendencies of just wanting to express myself in a feminine matter. Not knowing necessarily what being transgender was. Knowing that I had these feminine tendencies, my parents, luckily, were very supportive and always let me express myself however I wanted. My dad even gave me a Barbie playhouse for my birthday when I was very young. From that moment, I always knew that it was okay for me to be who I was. I knew that it was okay to express myself in a feminine manner, even though society was telling me that I was a boy. At home it was very safe for me to be however I wanted, and I thank my parents greatly for always supporting me and my self-expression. 

 
At the age of 15 I came out as homosexual to my parents. My parents were totally supportive. I'll never forget my mom's words, which were “okay, is there anything else that you want me to know?” She was like, “I already knew this about you.” My dad was also very supportive as well. I lived my life for many years as a gay male. 

At the age of 18, I was introduced to the art of drag. Shortly after that, I started to excel at performing the art of drag. I was going to cosmetology school during the day for hair and I was performing drag at night. I finally graduated cosmetology school and started to work in the salons in Chicago, finding my way in the hair industry, because hair has always been a very expressive outlet for me. Before I transitioned, my hair was the one thing that I felt like set me apart. I had really long black natural hair. I knew that having this long hair, even though I wasn't a woman, was making me feel very comfortable in public because I would be portrayed in a feminine manner. Ever since I can remember I've always been obsessed with hair. 

At the age of 22, I auditioned for RuPaul’s drag race and I got on for on my very first try. I was basically famous overnight. I'm so thankful to the art of drag, it has taught me so much about who I am. It really set me free on my gender journey. Through drag, I was able to discover that I wasn't just a man who dressed up as a woman. I indeed, was a woman. There was something that I needed to do about that. I was 25 years old when I decided, you know what – I can't keep living my life this way. I was very depressed. I was very suicidal. My mental health was struggling deeply because I wasn't living my life authentically. I finally decided to start taking estrogen and start hormone replacement therapy. My life has never been the same. That heavy dark feeling that I had on my chest before transitioning was instantly removed. I was starting to live my life authentically as a woman, and was starting to live my life the way that I should.

 
From the day that I started taking hormones to now, I look at all the different phases that I've gone through – from living my life as a gay male, to being androgynous, to now being a trans woman. And the one thing that I can say, I take great pride in accepting myself every step of the way. I think being able to accept yourself through every stage of your identity is the most beautiful thing ever and I know that that's what makes me who I am today. I take great pride in being an openly Japanese American Trans woman. 

I will always show up for my community. I want to encourage everybody to show up for trans people as much as you can. It's time for us to celebrate everyone in the community, as well as our allies.