Personal Narrative Essay - My Straight Father personal narrative essays

345 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: Religious identity development theory cultural differences

My Straight Father I think for most gay sons, it's difficult (if not impossible) to talk with our fathers about our lives. We make our world queerly ironic when we don't tell the people we love how we perceive our world. The realms of politics, religion, and sex are domains of power, myth, and embarrassing intimacy -- worlds that are difficult to share with our (straight) fathers who have lived very different lives than their gay sons. I remember when I reached the place with my parents when I could share more of my life with them then just the weather. It was a real breakthrough. I still giggle at one remarkable conversation when they were asking my partner and me about the mechanics of gay sex. It wasn't out of prurient interest on their part, they simply couldn't comprehend sex between two guys. I'll let you imagine how it all turned out, not at all like the telephone conversation in Jeffrey, thank goodness (that would have curled my hair). My father and I had many engaging conversations about religion. He was a devout Christian who lived his faith, and I'm a skeptic who is incapable of belief. But somewhere in the middle of our different spiritual lives we found a sacred place to talk, and that conversation lasted over the last decade of his life. And yes, Dad was a Republican, but he listened to me, and he told his U.S. senator that the military shouldn't discriminate against gay service members. My dad had a profound influence on the really BIG parts of my life, and I still ended up in a different galaxy. I also know, because we talked with each other, that I had a profound influence on his life, too. We both grew because of the differences between us. I don't think he ever understood the "Gay Lifestyle," but he understood his son who is gay.

Show More
Related

  • To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee - The Influences Parents Have On Thier Children

    887 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout our lives we're influenced by many. It can have an effect on the way we view issues within societal boundaries. One of the major influences children have in their lives comes from their parents. The parents of a child can have both a positive and a negative influence on their lives. In the novel "To Kill A Mockingbird", there are two excellent examples of how parents can be a major influence on their children. Atticus Finch, father of Jem and Scout Finch, plays the loving, kind and knowledgeable father. He is an example of how parents can have a positive influence on their children. Bob Ewell, father of Mayella Ewell, plays the drunken, abusive, and neglectful father. He is an example of how a parent can be a negative influence on their children's lives. Both fathers are very influential on the psychological development of their children.

    Read More

  • Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Policy

    1747 Words  | 4 Pages

    Lochhead, Carolyn. "Democrats aim to repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'; Obama supports lifting the ban on open gays in military." San Francisco Chronicle 23 July 2008: A1. Print.

    Read More

  • The Rights of Homesexuals to Serve in the Military

    1061 Words  | 3 Pages

    After the eighteen long years of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, which limits gays from being open about their sexuality in the military services, was finally brought to its end. President Barack Obama signed the reverse of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy on December 22, 2010. It was also stated that “The services will no longer separate service members under DADT (U.S. Department of Defense). Nevertheless, homosexuals should have the opportunity to serve in the military because the job had nothing to do with anyone’s sexual orientation.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Tupac, And 2morrow By Amaru Shakur

    1423 Words  | 3 Pages

    Tupac Amaru Shakur was an African-American rapper, poet, and record producer during the 1990’s. In his adolescent years, he attended the Baltimore School for the Arts where he took acting and dance classes, like ballet. He was taught radical politics by his mother, which helped him develop ideas about topics he would later use in his many works. At an early age, Tupac had seen the injustices of the real world. His mother was a former Black Panther activist who turned to substance abuse during Tupac’s childhood. Aside from that, he and his mother also moved many times while they lived together in New York City. While Tupac was in Baltimore, he discovered rap; not long after, he and his mother moved to the West Coast where he joined the rap group

    Read More

  • Sexual Orientation Discrimination in the Military

    1873 Words  | 4 Pages

    In September 2011, the United States lifted the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy (DADT), which restricted gay, lesbian, and bisexuals from openly serving in the military. This was the first time in American history in which people of every sexual orientation could serve openly (“11 Facts About,” n.d.). This was a momentous occasion for some and not so much for others. For those military members that had served in secret and those members that were firmly against gays and lesbians, this repeal had different meaning. Both groups contained members that have served in the military for years and were products of the Former President Bill Clinton’s 1993 “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. For many soldiers of this era, communication issues arose due to a pre-existing mentality, learned rules and regulations in services reinforced for two decades and the general cultural within combat related fields.

    Read More

  • WROU 92.1 FM

    535 Words  | 2 Pages

    I chose to do my report on WROU 92.1 FM, a Dayton urban contemporary radio station that plays rhythm and blues (R&B), and rap. I've listened to WROU for years and I consider them my favorite radio station. Although I have listened to the station, I've never paid attention to how the programming is done, so I figured this would be my chance to do so.

    Read More

  • Why Skateboarders' Shoes Wear Out So Fast

    2723 Words  | 6 Pages

    With the acquired results of Kevlar's failure and Wearforce's success, my hypothesis is simultaneously rejected and supported. Kevlar failed due to high cost and poor performance testing; where as, Wearforce succeeded in protecting the ollie area of a skate-boarding shoe at an economical cost without any drawbacks to the manufacturer.

    Read More

  • Admissions Essay - My Father Died of AIDS

    736 Words  | 2 Pages

    From the moment my parents told me, I confronted emotions and issues that many adults have never faced.

    Read More

  • How Did Tupac Change The World

    1200 Words  | 3 Pages

    He was the child of Afeni Shakur and Billy Garland, both Ex Black Panther members. At his high school, his family moved to Baltimore. He went to The Baltimore School for the Performing Arts and examined acting and artful dance. At this school, the educators had an impression of Tupac that he had a remarkable potential. Sadly but, he needed to move to Oakland, CA with his family and that was the turning point in which Tupac started hang with the wrong

    Read More

  • Ludwig Van Beethoven

    559 Words  | 2 Pages

    Ludwig Van Beethoven was born on December 16, 1770 in Bonn, Germany. He was the third child of Johann and Johanna Beethoven. Ludwig had a terrible childhood because his dad was an alcoholic. He woke him up in the middle of the night and made him play the piano until dawn. He would smack him every time he made a mistake. His father was a musician as was his grandfather. Ludwig loved spending time with his grandfather. His grandfather died when Beethoven was only three years old.

    Read More

  • Gay Parenting Should Not Be Encouraged

    1680 Words  | 4 Pages

    One argument that gay parents have is that children don't need two sex couple role models. Having two parents of the same sex deprives the children of the chance to see how males and females interact in a family situation. Even though gay parents argue the children are exposed to their fair share of traditional male and female relationships, these may be somewhat censored as the visiting child is not part of that family and most families tend to keep certain things within the family. Parents are very strong role models and children are known to mimic what they see.

    Read More

  • Gay Marriage Does NOT Destroy Traditional Marriage

    1719 Words  | 4 Pages

    Rich Mkhondo. "Gay Families Are the Same as Traditional Families." Opposing Viewpoints: Gay Parenting. Ed. Beth Rosenthal. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. City Colleges Of Chicago. 12 Oct. 2013

    Read More

  • Jazz Music: The Beginning Of African And African American Music

    924 Words  | 2 Pages

    The beginnings of Jazz are thought to be born at a specific time, but there is more to the birth of jazz. Jazz music was born more or less simultaneously in different parts of the United States and had many sources for its creation. Africans have contributed a lot to the style of making music, free rhythm, and the emotion with which they interpret their folk music that was later transformed into jazz. In the new world they absorbed the harmony and the concept of the Western form and condensed the African and European musical ideas, giving a musical style that can be called African American. Jazz became a type of urban expression that began to take hold in the cafes of New Orleans in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.

    Read More

  • Personal Narrative: My Bilingual Identity

    362 Words  | 1 Pages

    Growing up in a town, the pecking order keeping those from expressing unorthodox ideology and inadvertently following tradition values has effected my overall experience. My unique background centers around my adoption and is subtile to my sexual orientation. This made my views different compared to my best friend. Expressing my bisexual identity to her was extremely difficult because of her conservative views.

    Read More

More about Personal Narrative Essay - My Straight Father personal narrative essays

Open Document