Family
Like doctors and pilots, I didn’t make up the principles that govern LGBTQ mental health — we have merely discovered them and now use them daily to safeguard lives. I pray with my feet every day that Latter-day Saints will come to fully understand these discoveries too. We are all part of one body in Christ. May we see that each part however different is equally needed by us.
I always wondered why my father, who always encouraged people to go to church, to pray, and to read the scriptures, did not enter the church with others on Sundays. My mom decided to tell us that our dad was gay.
I feel distant, but at the same time not, from the church. I feel far away in the physical sense, not knowing sometimes how to introduce my husband, but close because I am with my Heavenly Father, and being close to Him unites me with the church and unifies my marriage.
Getting married to a man was hard for my family, but they were really great. I invited all my siblings and even some of my extended family. That being said, I was selective about who I invited. I didn’t feel the need to invite people that I didn’t feel particularly close to or people that I felt wouldn’t be supportive or happy on the day. My parents were still on the fence about things a bit, I think, but they were willing to come to support me and now they love my husband a lot.
For me, being a member of the human race carries an enormous responsibility and purpose for life. Each and every day I wake up, I am grateful to have another day on earth with my husband, and another chance to leave the world better than I found it.
Our Heavenly Father is the only One who has all answers. He knows the reason for my attraction to women.
Throughout the day, my dad kept saying things like, “I had no idea. I had no idea.” And, “I feel like I’m seeing with new eyes.”
I am Mormon. And I am gay. And all of those identities are sacred. All are holy. All are anointed truths that make me who I am.
I dreaded wearing the costume again. No matter how beautiful it was, no matter how desirable others found it, there was no point of existing inside a costume.