June is a great month. It is the month in which me, my mother, Prince and my dearest friend Debbie were born. It is also Pride month. My Facebook cover photo is a quote from Daniel Radcliff, “You don’t have to be gay to be a supporter, you just have to be human.” It seems so simple, yet people like to make it so complicated. In fact, you may or may not have read about a decorated Vietnam vet who wrote a portion of his own obituary (as follows):
"I must tell you one more thing. I was Gay all my life: thru grade school, thru High School, thru College, thru Life. I was in a loving and caring relationship with Paul Cavagnaro of North Greenbush. He was the love of my life. We had 25 great years together. Paul died in 1994 from a medical Procedure gone wrong. I'll be buried next to Paul. I'm sorry for not having the courage to come out as Gay. I was afraid of being ostracized: by Family, Friends, and Co-Workers. Seeing how people like me were treated, I just could not do it. Now that my secret is known, I'll forever Rest in Peace." - Col. Edward Thomas Ryan
If this doesn’t break your heart or crush your soul or bring you to tears, then perhaps you need to reexamine your conscience.
Society failed Colonel Ryan. Society fails each other all the time. We need to do better. We can do better. We must do better.
I’m glad you found your peace Colonel. Too bad you couldn’t find it earlier.
To see his full obituary, visit to Legacy.com
Until next time…
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