This is a comment posted on Clay Aiken's blog by a fan, or ex-fan I guess, after he announced he was, surprise, surprise...gay.
"This is really shocking news as I had no idea he was gay and now I have to deal with this. I am not sure what to say to people who know I was a fan. I didn't go to work today and am not answering the telephone."
Seriously? I am still laughing out loud and shaking my head. Give me a break here. This person obviously is oblivious to the fact that the unemployment rate is 5%; the highest it has been in five years and they are skipping out on work and not answering the phone because Clay, someone they probably never even met, is gay. Unbelievable...the things people do and say to get out of having to work these days is mind boggling! Simon Cowell said it best when he blurted out, "It is like finding out Santa Clause isn't real. So what and who cares. It's 2008!"
Although I have never been a big Clay Aiken fan, I am a huge fan of honesty and self-love and seeing people as human beings and not for their sexual orientation, color, religion or gender. I am a straight single mom with a very homophobic ex-husband and I am so glad her dad's toxic influence on the topic is not something she is growing up with. I have been telling my daughter for years that love is love and when you find it, when you have the opportunity to experience that kind of deep love for another human being and receive it in return, you embrace and cherish every single second of it.
She has been talking to me about gay issues since elementary school when she made friends with a boy that is gay. He has come out in high school but even back in 4th grade, it was evident that he was gay. It led to some great discussions as to whether people are born gay or choose to be gay. Knowing this boy from such an early age, the answer for us, at least in most cases I believe, is clear.
And as I read about how Clay came out to his mother and how painful that was for him in the car when he began to bawl after years of an at least somewhat painful facade, I imagined him in his private moments being deeply torn because of what others may think or say or what societies role has been in making those who are gay not want to come out due to shame or humiliation and fear. People not wanting to show up for work or answer the phone because someone they supported for their "talent" is gay certainly demonstrates that, although we have come so far, we still have a very long way to go.
And so to Clay I would say your honesty is a great way to start your new and amazing life as a parent. Loving yourself is a measure of how deeply you can love another. Keep loving yourself, keep loving your son and keep shining!