Yesterday I watched a snippet from the
Today show where Kathy Lee Gifford
paid honor to her deceased husband.
While somewhat maudlin and a touch
self serving - I found it moving. If for
no other reason than her obvious love
for a man who was exactly that - a man.
As she shared his rags to riches story,
Kathy also provided insight on Frank
Gifford's strong personal faith. By the
end I'd learned something about both
of them. In essence it was a gift. And
isn't that what candor is all about?
My life is an open blog. Given I've
spewed whatever came to mind on
a daily basis for over two and a half
years, there's little you don't know
about me. Years ago I learned that
I wasn't very good at keeping secrets.
Nor was it in my best interest to hide
much of anything. Post exiting the
closet I decided to let it all hang out.
If for no other reason than in the
hope that sharing my saga may help
someone else. After all we're all in
this together. So why keep secrets?
I recently revisited the film "Milk"
starring Sean Penn. Most moving
was Harvey's challenge to the gay
community to finally "come out."
Today many feel that the recent and
rapid shift in public opinion related
to gay issues is due to that simple
act. You see, we're afraid of things
that we don't understand. Once put
in the context of a brother, neighbor,
or friend everyone now realizes that
we naturally are who we are - not a
group of family destroying monsters.
Everybody has a story. Each life
equates to some sort of saga. Some
require several volumes to recount
their tale. Have you read the blog
"Humans of New York"? It's author
randomly chats with people on the
street. Rich, poor, happy, sad. Each
participant opens their hearts to the
world at large. The result is almost
always moving plus something new
is learned via another's life journey.
What could be a greater gift than
helping another find the answer?
Many feel that baring one's soul is
somehow an act of bad taste. Yet
being brave enough to let it ALL
hang out can be the most freeing of
experiences. Have you ever been to
a nude beach? If not, I must strongly
suggest you try it. Sans any and all
accoutrements we're all pretty much
the same. And once one has nothing
to hide, one realizes that whatever
was bothering you about you wasn't
worth worrying about. At this point
I am who I am. Take me or leave me.
The bravest thing we can do is accept
ourselves "as is." From that safe place
one can move on to continuing adult
education. Some of us learn faster and
that's why little is kinder than sharing
lessons learned. Everyone benefits
from your mistakes. While you're not
Yoda - you know something that I've
not figured out yet. So isn't it rather
selfish to not to provide open access
to the error of your ways? Why not
help others avoid disaster? Now go
ahead... talk amongst yourselves.