Drop what you’re doing and take six minutes to watch this video. Trust me. Noah St. John is only 15 years old, but won NPR’s Snap Judgment show’s “Performance of the Year” award for his story about his two moms. I love it not only because of St. John’s amazing delivery, but also because he doesn’t hesitate to show that LGBT families face the same ups and downs as any others.
The world has lost a pathbreaker. Jeanne Manford, founder of PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), passed away today, barely a month after celebrating her 92nd birthday.
Parenting magazine has named lesbian mom Jennifer Tyrrell one of its “Best Parents of 2012.” The Ohio mom has been speaking out since April when the Boy Scouts of America told her that because of her sexual orientation, she could no longer serve as the den leader of her son’s Cub Scout chapter.
Wow. I take a New Year’s vacation with my family for a few days (about which more later), and look what happens: The first baby born in France in 2013 has lesbian moms.
Yesterday, I posted my column about the December 14th school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. Today, I’m honored to bring you a guest post from my own mother, who had her own thoughts and offered to share them here. Some of our thoughts (not surprisingly) overlap, but she adds her own perspective as a mental health professional.
Thanks, Mom!
(I wrote this for my newspaper column the day of the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. I hope 2013 is the year we as a country begin to take serious steps to ensure such tragedies never happen again.)
This was going to be a very different column. Then 20 children died in Connecticut.
Welcome to 2013! I don’t know about you, but for me, 2012 zipped by at a faster than usual clip. I’m hoping 2013 takes a more leisurely pace, allowing us to relax, enjoy, and savor all of the sweet moments it brings.
A very merry Christmas to those of you celebrating the holiday today! My family and I are entering the homestretch of our multi-denominational holiday festivities, which extend roughly from Thanksgiving to New Year’s or until the holiday treats run out.
Dear Children:
It gets better. I know from experience. When I was but a wee foal, the other young reindeer bullied me mercilessly about my nose. It was not the coal black of theirs, but waxed and waned from a dull red to a glowing, vibrant crimson, depending on my mood.
Sometimes, a piece of writing just makes me think. Chase Strangio’s “Making Room for More Impossible Decisions: Reflections on Being a Trans Parent” at HuffPo is one of them. Strangio gives much food for thought to parents across the LGBT spectrum and beyond, and calling for a greater understanding among parents of all types.
