Mother's Day 2012: LGBT Readers And Bloggers On Their Moms And Mother Figures

In a day and age when growing up lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) is an increasingly volatile experience, our mothers mean more to us now than ever before.

Of course, our moms are -- and have always been -- special. "I once heard the saying that a mother's relationship with her son is a love affair that never ends, and I really do believe that," notes HuffPost Gay Voices blogger Justin Huang. "My relationship with my mom is really inspiring to me personally because it shows me that humanity trumps politics, and that -- as cliched as it could be -- love is transcendent."

Adds Zach Stafford: "Being gay and a person of color is hard, and my mom helped me face that battle growing up while allowing me to share all of me. I saw at an early age that no matter what I told her, no matter who I became, she would always love me and she would fight for me. She has done that."

In some cases, our true "moms" aren't our biological mothers at all. "Aunt Debbie has given advice on life and love, supported me through difficult moments and helped me stand tall in the face of adversity," reader Johnathan Fields tells us. "She has forgiven me when I've screwed up, defended me when it wasn't comfortable and loved me in moments when I couldn't even feel love for myself."

There's still time to be featured! Send us a photo and a few lines about your mom or mother figure to GayVoices@huffingtonpost.com

In honor of Mother's Day 2012, HuffPost Gay Voices asked its readers and bloggers to submit photos along with a short anecdote about their moms. Take a look at some of the best submissions below: