I've been pretty open recently about my struggles with insecurities. It was nervewracking when I wrote about it for the first time during my senior year of high school, but now I'm proud to say that I'm at the point where I feel relatively comfortable explaining it to people. I would say going to college has helped due to the fact there is no dress code and I'm free to express myself through clothing in more ways (for example, being able to wear spaghetti strap tops and shorts that don't have to be a certain length), but what has helped me the most in my first year has been being a part of the Forbidden Fruit.

Forbidden Fruit is Eugene, Oregon's only live shadow cast. Basically, what we do throughout the school year is put on shows in which we act alongside the cult classic "Rocky Horror Picture Show," and generally we shake up the themes too. In addition, we also interact with the audience, say "callbacks" during the show (pretty much just us mocking the movie), and perform the occasional preshow routine.

I was first introduced to Forbidden Fruit at the beginning of this school year when I went to a club fair shortly after moving into my dorm. I remember walking around by myself and taking in all the different clubs the school had to offer; that's when I saw a few of my now-friends dressed up in screen-accurate costumes. I had been a fan of "Rocky Horror Picture Show" for some time, so I went up to the booth and received information about meeting times.

I was nervous to go to the first meeting, but everyone was so nice and welcoming. They made it abundantly clear that the group was very progressive and accepting. Everyone was treated as family and worked to build each other up through encouragement and constructive criticism. In addition, we would never be forced to do or wear something that we weren't comfortable with.

My first role was as a Transylvanian, or one of the background characters. In my first show, all I wanted to do was take a baby step in terms of extravagant costuming since it is traditionally very showy and sometimes tight in areas of my body I feel insecure about. However, as time passed and I got different roles, I soon realized that no one there was going to criticize how my body looked in clothing once out of my comfort zone and we all loved each other for who we were as people; I soon became able to wear more traditional costumes with confidence.

Forbidden Fruit has had such a positive impact on my first year of college. From being able to hang out with a group of great people I love twice a week to having something else to do besides schoolwork (Odyssey came shortly after I joined Forbidden Fruit and I am still in love with both activities), my "Rocky" family taught me that we are all beautiful and shouldn't be afraid of who we are. There are still some types of costumes that I am hesitant to wear because the insecurities are still there, but I know that my friends will support me 100% whenever I'm ready.

To any member of Forbidden Fruit who may be reading this, I love you and I am so grateful to have you in my life!