Undivided: Coming Out, Becoming Whole, and Living Free From Shame. Vicky Beeching

at university and we all thought it was groundbreaking stuff—but none of us spent time online, and social media didn’t yet exist.

      I wish I’d allowed myself to socialize with students from other colleges in the city who could have told me about LGBTQ+ rights and introduced me to a more diverse social circle. University could have been an enlightening opportunity for me—a place of healing and self-acceptance, where both my faith and my gay orientation could have been affirmed. Instead, I just ignored my feelings, buckled down, and focused on my academic work. The pace was intense, and before I knew it, my first year at university was over.

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      One afternoon during my second year at university, the phone rang abruptly, interrupting the writing of my latest essay. I was sitting cross-legged on the floor of my student room, surrounded by a huge pile of books. Knocking papers everywhere as I rushed to grab the receiver, I was surprised to find the voice on the other end was American.

      It was Vineyard Records, an international record label founded by the church denomination I attended. They were well known for producing worship CDs that flew off the shelves in the States.

      The man on the phone said I was invited to a training retreat for Christian songwriters who showed great potential. Thirty of us from around the world would be given a week of input and teaching to take our songwriting skills to the next level—we’d also get the chance to pitch our newest compositions to Vineyard Records representatives.

      The entire trip would be fully paid for by the label in the hopes of discovering fresh talent. It was a lot to take in; I couldn’t stop smiling as he talked. The best news of all was finding out where this training would take place: Los Angeles, California. I’d always wanted to visit the US, and now I finally would.