10 Year Anniversary!

Today is a very special day. Today is my 10 year cosplay anniversary. It feels a bit surreal typing that sentence and I struggle to come to terms with the reality of it all. I know It’s not rare for someone to have a hobby for 10 years, but I do think it’s rare for someone to turn their “niche and somewhat outlandish hobby” into a life changing career.

10 years ago, on the last day of my local comic book convention, I made the decision to overcome my fear and embarrassment about my love for dressing up. I put on my homemade Robin costume and made my way to the convention alone. I remember deciding to walk 45 minutes in the cold rain because I was too embarrassed to take the bus and I couldn’t afford the cab.

Walking there was the wrong decision because all I could do was think about the cars driving by and looking at me. If I saw someone walking towards me I would cross the street so we didn’t need to make eye contact and so they couldn’t make a comment. I was very close to just turning around to go home and I think if it was a nice day that really would have happened. In retrospect I guess I’m pretty lucky it was cold and miserable because all I wanted was to be warm and the convention centre was closer than home.

A sense of calm started to wash over me as I made my way into the convention but within the first ten minutes I already felt lost. I had never done this before. I didn’t know what I was supposed to do. Do I just walk around and act normal, do I stay in character, what if someone wants a picture, if I stop am I in the way, can I shop with fake blood and dirt on my hands, WHY DID I DO THIS.

Feeling incredibly overwhelmed, I messaged a photographer I knew from Calgary and asked if we could start our scheduled photo shoot early because at least that was something I was confident doing. The rain had let off a bit so we decided to shoot outdoors, and thankfully I now had some people with me so it didn’t feel so scary. Not to mention there were lots of other people out there in costume taking photos. It was starting to feel more like being dressed up for Halloween and less like being an outcast weirdo. The shoot went well, and it filled me with just enough confidence to go back to the convention and not give up.

By the time the shoot was done, I was warm, my hands were clean, and I was ready to walk around and take everything in. Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on how you look at it, I was not really able to walk around because people kept stoping me to take pictures. The compliments started rolling in, the conversation about comics started flowing, and best of all, the kids there were so excited to see a Robin. I’ve talked about it before but one of the best parts about being someone like Robin or Spider-Man or superman is that kids know those characters and get so excited to see them. Some how my cold heart was starting to thaw and I was slowly realizing that these were MY PEOPLE.

That day truly sparked something in me that continues to burn bright even as I type this out. I’m going to spend most of today just basking in the glory of a life that almost wasn’t, and being thankful for everything and everyone along the way. Thank you all so fucking much.