A quick story.
I visited the SF MOMA yesterday, as the first Tuesday of every month is free. It was an amazing day, filled with many different inspiring exhibitions. One of my favorites was the 1000 Journals Project. Someguy, a SF artist, sent 1000 journals out into the world to be filled by people everywhere. He created a website, www.1000journals.com, to track where these journals went. The project turned into an amazing success, and the journals themseleves are inspiring beacons of humanity.
As I was thumbing thorugh one of the journals on display, #751, I came across a person that had made a list of things: things they wanted to do in the new year, things they wanted to do when they were 60, 70, 80, 100…things that this person had learned that s/he wanted to share with the world. One of the things s/he wrote was “standing up for my gay and lesbian family more” and “fight more for human right.” Another, for when s/he was 80 years old, was to carry flower seeds and throw them wherever s/he went. S/he included an email and phone number at the end of the 3-page entry; the phone number had a 732 area code which is the same area code that my parents live in back in Jersey.
So I took out my BlackBerry and I emailed her right there, standing above this book that had changed hands multiple times all over the world. It turns out that her name is Janice, and she is an artist that lives 30 minutes from my parents. She has a gay son. She is inspiring. She will be coming to San Francisco to ride in the AIDS/LifeCycle fundraiser in May, where 3000 people bike from SF to LA in order to raise money for AIDS awareness and research. She asked me to pass on the link to her donation page, and I agreed.
If you are able to donate, please visit her page:
I also wanted to include some words that she forwarded to me - if only more people could be more loving of others, regardless of their differences…
About her gay son, Bryan:
“Someone you know or love is gay.
When you have a son or daughter who is gay or lesbian, you are lucky if they come out to you and you can live your lives as a family honestly. When my son told me he was gay, he asked, “Do you want the truth or do you want a lie?” I have never been sorry he shared his truth with me. Parents of gays and lesbians have many reasons to be proud of our children. I wonder if those of you who have had to deal with being disenfranchised by society realize how much you mean to us—how much you teach us: to be more courageous; to fight for what is important and right; not to give up on our dreams. You are our quiet heroes, giving more than taking. Refusing to settle for injustice no matter how blind, deaf and dumb the rest of the world can be. I am profoundly grateful that Bryan is my son!
When Bryan came out to me, he asked, “Do you want to live a lie or do you want the truth?” I chose the truth and have never been sorry. I hope you know that our gay and lesbian children teach us not to put up with hypocrisy. To live with more courage. You are asked to endure more discrimination than any soul should and you teach us how to deflect it, still live productive lives and are living examples of the best of the human race. I would like my website to help young adults struggling to reach their families to increase their comfort level and confidence. That worried parents could also come to see that gay and lesbian children lead exciting, good lives despite how society tries to disenfranchise them. Lastly, it’s this simple: Someone you know and love is gay. I am so far out there that everyone knows our story and I have even told my father, when he first found out about Bryan and was being mouthy, that if he didn’t shut up, he wouldn’t see me again because we were a team. If everyone treated this as the norm, which it is, we would not have idiots like George Bush fomenting hate to cover up his war disasters. I have written to Obama that I will not watch his induction with his hate-filled minister reading the blessing. Not only is he a hypocrite, he has gone out of his way with Prop 8 to hurt many outstanding members of society.
Someone gave me a blood transfusion when I had a miscarriage. Otherwise I wouldn’t be here. My husband got a kidney from a living donor, his best friend, when none of us in the family matched. The world is a shared gift. Those aren’t strings holding us together. They’re ribbons! If we all join hands in peace and love, we can beat back the hatred dominating so many corners on earth.”
Ribbons holding us together. Ribbons of hope. I am taking this inspiration and running with it. Thanks Janice
