This book has been reviewed positively by Child Care Experts!
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EVERYBODY HAS THOSE THOUGHTS
SO IT DOESN’T MEAN YOU’RE GAY
by
Cristian YoungMiller
RateABull
Books
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Published By:
RateABull Publishing
Copyright © 2010 by Cristian YoungMiller
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The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Copyright © 2010 by Cristian YoungMiller
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review. For information contact Cristian YoungMiller at [email protected].
RateABull Books
Visit our Web site at www.RateABull.com
Book Design by Cristian YoungMiller
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Dedication:
To everyone who is having a hard time figuring out where they fit in.
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1
Jack was very sad. He was so sad that he didn’t even realize he was crying.
Jack rocked himself back and forth on the swing in his backyard. It was the swing that he and his friends hadn’t used since they were 12. The only reason why Jack, now 14 years old, had returned was because it helped to lessen his sadness.
Jack’s dad, dressed like how a doctor dressed when they came home from work, entered the backyard. Jack’s dad slowly walked over to the swing set and sat on the swing next to Jack.
“Bad day, kiddo?” Jack’s dad asked.
Jack didn’t want to talk so he just nodded his head yes.
“You know, when I have a bad day, I always talk to your mom about it. And when your mom has a bad day, she always talks to me about it. We always feel better once we do. Do you want to talk to me about your day? I promise you’ll feel better afterwards.”
“Billy and Sandy called me gay,” Jack said, very upset.
“Well that wasn’t very nice of your friends. But you know, it isn’t a bad thing to be gay.”
“But I’m not gay,” Jack said loudly.
“Ok.” Jack’s father looked back at the house. “When I was a kid, the kids in my school used to call me soft. Even back then I knew that there was nothing wrong with being soft. A lot of people prefer to be soft. In fact, now I actually prefer to work with people who are soft.”
“Is it because you are soft, dad?”
“Ummm, maybe.” Jack’s father said, looking over at his son, a bit surprised. “My point is, what’s so great about being hard? Nothing. And what’s so bad about being soft? Nothing.
But the thing wasn’t so much about the words that they used, as much as it was about how they said it. When they called me soft, I knew that they said it to try and hurt me. And because I knew that they were trying to hurt me, it did hurt me. So for your friends to call you gay for no reason, even if there’s nothing wrong with being gay, must make you feel bad.”
“Yeah,” Jack said, not feeling any better.
Jack and his father were quiet for a while as they both rocked themselves back and forth on the swing.
“But what if they weren’t saying it in a mean way?” Jack asked his dad.
“What, do you mean they weren’t yelling when they said it?”
“Yeah,” Jack quietly said back.
“Just because someone doesn’t yell something, doesn’t mean that it wasn’t meant to hurt you. And you can always tell if someone is saying something to hurt you, no matter how nicely they seem to say it.”
“Yeah, but what if they had a reason to say it?” Jack asked, looking at the ground in front of him.
“What reason could they possibly have for calling you gay?” Jack’s dad asked, confused.
“I don’t know.”
“Well, there’s nothing wrong with being gay. But if someone is saying something about you that isn’t true, it’s not right, no matter what it is.”
“Yeah,” Jack said, with less energy than usual. “But, what if they had a reason to call me that?”
“Why, did something happen?” Jack’s dad asked again.
“No,” Jack said before looking away.
Both sat on the swing quietly for another second.
“Have you ever heard of the game, Truth or Dare?” Jack asked, breaking the silence.
“Sure, why? What happened?”
“Umm,” Jack looked at his dad, trying to find the courage. “Can we go somewhere else to talk about this?”
“Why don’t we head inside?” Jack’s dad suggested.
“No.”
“Ok, then how about we take a trip to the mini-golf course and you can try and beat me at a round of mini-golf?”
Jack’s eyes lit up. He liked miniature golf. It was something that he considered himself to be very good at. He had always been able to beat Billy and Sandy at it. The only person that he hadn’t yet beaten was his dad. But even though the results were always the same when playing his dad, he still loved the challenge.
“Yeah, let’s do it.”
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Everybody Has Those Thoughts So It Doesn't Mean You're Gay Page 1
