Challenge Response: Oktoberfest
National Vampire Coming Out Day
I’m Cecilia, a volunteer with Vamp Out, a nonprofit speakers’ bureau that sends vampires like me into high school classrooms like yours to tell our story.
Halloween is National Vampire Coming Out Day. I’ll share with you my story and some facts about vampires. Keep in mind that no two vamping out stories are the same. I’ll answer questions at the end.
First, let me debunk the biggest myth about vampires: We cannot convert people. People who become vampires are born with the vampire gene. Vampirism manifests the first time two vampires exchange blood. By manifest, I mean that we gain super-human strength, agelessness, and the thirst for blood. Let me debunk the second biggest myth about vampires: yes, we drink blood, but it does not need to be human. We might drink blood from vampire or non-vampire humans for many reasons-sharing intimacy being only one of them.
For me, I first realized I was a vampire at the end of college. I had suspected earlier. I had always stayed up late at night and liked my steaks rare. But, those are just stereotypical signs. Many people can have these characteristics and still not be vampires. My college had a vampire awareness program for freshmen. I was able to make an informed decision and to exchange blood with someone I cared about when I was in my early 30s. I have vampire friends who didn’t have the same awareness and exchanged blood too young and will look like teenagers forever.
Vamping out was not easy for me. My parents disowned me. My sisters became frightened of me. The thought of outliving all my non-vampire friends and family weighs heavily on me. But this is who I am. I’ll stop there for now and answer any questions you might have.
I’m Cecilia, a volunteer with Vamp Out, a nonprofit speakers’ bureau that sends vampires like me into high school classrooms like yours to tell our story.
Halloween is National Vampire Coming Out Day. I’ll share with you my story and some facts about vampires. Keep in mind that no two vamping out stories are the same. I’ll answer questions at the end.
First, let me debunk the biggest myth about vampires: We cannot convert people. People who become vampires are born with the vampire gene. Vampirism manifests the first time two vampires exchange blood. By manifest, I mean that we gain super-human strength, agelessness, and the thirst for blood. Let me debunk the second biggest myth about vampires: yes, we drink blood, but it does not need to be human. We might drink blood from vampire or non-vampire humans for many reasons-sharing intimacy being only one of them.
For me, I first realized I was a vampire at the end of college. I had suspected earlier. I had always stayed up late at night and liked my steaks rare. But, those are just stereotypical signs. Many people can have these characteristics and still not be vampires. My college had a vampire awareness program for freshmen. I was able to make an informed decision and to exchange blood with someone I cared about when I was in my early 30s. I have vampire friends who didn’t have the same awareness and exchanged blood too young and will look like teenagers forever.
Vamping out was not easy for me. My parents disowned me. My sisters became frightened of me. The thought of outliving all my non-vampire friends and family weighs heavily on me. But this is who I am. I’ll stop there for now and answer any questions you might have.