This heart holds many: my life as the nonbinary millennial child of a polyamorous family

Many of us were asked by our mother to do the dishes as children. Perhaps some of us would need to be asked more than once. Koe Creation was the type who'd get asked three times, by three different mothers. Crowded parent-teacher conferences, queer youth summer camp, and parental adoptions over potluck dinner were typical of Koe's otherwise divergent upbringing raised in a queer, polyamorous family. Taught from young age to embrace sex-positivity and LGBT acceptance, Koe had, no doubt, an experience of "family values" that differs wildly from that of many who were raised in conservative North America. Still: all families know conflict, and all hearts know struggle, no matter how loved. While in the spotlight as a "poster child" for the alternative Seattle community, Koe yearned for a realization of theirself beyond the "shadow of their tribe." This drive for a singular identity to navigate a world of collective relationships led Koe to leave the alt-Seattle scene behind them—first for the vivacious beaches of Hawai'i, and later, the couches of San Francisco—to find the self that no one person or family could make for them. This Heart Holds Many is a testament of transformative, communal love, as told by an educator and life-long learner who has dedicated their life to helping others grasp their extraordinary love.