That quote from Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. is especially important when thinking about being in a diverse environment. I've been working in The Mosaic Center for over a month now and if I thought I had an open mind before, I can say that over the duration of my time here so far, it has been stretched much more. 

On Sunday September 30 there was an event called Drag UMBC which was essentially a drag show of sorts. I will be honest in saying that when advertisements had come out for this event, which is sponsored by The Mosaic Center by the way, I had my mind made up that I wouldn't be attending. Eventually, the amazing Oteri Esiekpe (Graduate Coordinator for LGBTQ Programs) asked me to take photos at the event for her and I was happy to oblige (because she's amazing).

Going into it, I had no clue what expect but what I got was: a Drag Show that involved "Queens" and "Kings" doing sets and performances with a touch of crude yet hilarious one-liners and other jokes. All fun and jokes aside, there was a Q&A period where attendees could "live tweet" their questions and have "The Queens" answer them. This gave the program an educational touch that I appreciated very much as someone who was there that didn't really understand all of what I was watching. The performers shed light on what it means to go drag, why they dress that way, how they chose their drag names, etc. It turned out to be quite a learning experience. 

In the end, I can still say that I wouldn't buy a ticket to a drag show or choose to go for entertainment purposes but opening my mind and attending this show, I can say that I've acquired knowledge about something that I didn't have before. Knowledge is power, right?