http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber
As regular readers will know, I had realised I am gay by the time I was fourteen years-old and was sexually active with other boys and men throughout my teenage years. It would have helped to be able to take this over with someone instead of being forced into a closet by so-called public opinion. In some parts of the world, public opinion may have shifted for the better, on the face if it at any rate, but the closet is still there for anyone growing up in a gay-unfriendly environment to hide in and/ or be tossed into like an unwanted item of clothing and/or have the door locked behind them and only allowed out for communal meals or prayers.
The old adage is unfair and morally reprehensible that children should be seen and not heard, and if older people are living longer so children are maturing more quickly. I will be 68 years-old on the next winter solstice, and it has been my view for more than half a century that to suggest a teenager is still a child is an error of judgement in law, principle, and the minds of many among those said to represent ‘public opinion’.
These days LGBT young people as well as older men and women can look for a local support group and/or forum on the Internet in the absence of a close relative or friend with whom they can discuss their sexuality. It remains a tragedy, however, that many are forced to do so in secret. We may have Political Correctness, Equal Opportunities and various diversity policies and projects in some parts of the world, but many of these are purely cosmetic. If the whole world can’t wake up to the fact that LGBT is OK in the 21st century, it says precious little for a common humanity.
G-A-Y, OF AN AGE or SEXUALITY, AN AFFINITY WITH MIND-BODY-SPIRIT
Fourteen years-old,
told we’re not old enough
to know our own minds,
warned never to surrender
to any ‘peculiar’’ feelings
we might have for each other
or (worse) so much as consider
we might be gay
Fourteen years-old,
not cleared by law or canon
to know our own minds,
assured lots of boys and girls
have ‘strong’ feelings
for each other, but it doesn’t
mean we’re criminals or (worse)
we could be gay
Fourteen years-old,
told it’s only natural to confuse
affection for a friend
with something more, but not sure
what or why because
we don’t have the experience
in life to really be in love or (worse)
be sure we’re gay
Fourteen years-old,
vulnerable to aspects of illusion
conspiring against us
along with misleading stereotypes
some parents take as read
so would save us from following
in the footsteps of history’s giants
who were gay
Fourteen-years old,
growing surer of ourselves daily
and discovering feelings
no one ever talks about at school,
religions ignore or shame,
politicians fall back on diplomacy
media’s take on public duty, ‘outing’
celebrities suspected gay
Fourteen years-old,
wise beyond our years, old enough
to know our own minds.
unafraid to explore feelings we have
for each other,
sick of being driven to subterfuge,
impatient for that milestone birthday
setting us free
Copyright R. N. Taber 2011
As regular readers will know, I had realised I am gay by the time I was fourteen years-old and was sexually active with other boys and men throughout my teenage years. It would have helped to be able to take this over with someone instead of being forced into a closet by so-called public opinion. In some parts of the world, public opinion may have shifted for the better, on the face if it at any rate, but the closet is still there for anyone growing up in a gay-unfriendly environment to hide in and/ or be tossed into like an unwanted item of clothing and/or have the door locked behind them and only allowed out for communal meals or prayers.
The old adage is unfair and morally reprehensible that children should be seen and not heard, and if older people are living longer so children are maturing more quickly. I will be 68 years-old on the next winter solstice, and it has been my view for more than half a century that to suggest a teenager is still a child is an error of judgement in law, principle, and the minds of many among those said to represent ‘public opinion’.
These days LGBT young people as well as older men and women can look for a local support group and/or forum on the Internet in the absence of a close relative or friend with whom they can discuss their sexuality. It remains a tragedy, however, that many are forced to do so in secret. We may have Political Correctness, Equal Opportunities and various diversity policies and projects in some parts of the world, but many of these are purely cosmetic. If the whole world can’t wake up to the fact that LGBT is OK in the 21st century, it says precious little for a common humanity.
G-A-Y, OF AN AGE or SEXUALITY, AN AFFINITY WITH MIND-BODY-SPIRIT
Fourteen years-old,
told we’re not old enough
to know our own minds,
warned never to surrender
to any ‘peculiar’’ feelings
we might have for each other
or (worse) so much as consider
we might be gay
Fourteen years-old,
not cleared by law or canon
to know our own minds,
assured lots of boys and girls
have ‘strong’ feelings
for each other, but it doesn’t
mean we’re criminals or (worse)
we could be gay
Fourteen years-old,
told it’s only natural to confuse
affection for a friend
with something more, but not sure
what or why because
we don’t have the experience
in life to really be in love or (worse)
be sure we’re gay
Fourteen years-old,
vulnerable to aspects of illusion
conspiring against us
along with misleading stereotypes
some parents take as read
so would save us from following
in the footsteps of history’s giants
who were gay
Fourteen-years old,
growing surer of ourselves daily
and discovering feelings
no one ever talks about at school,
religions ignore or shame,
politicians fall back on diplomacy
media’s take on public duty, ‘outing’
celebrities suspected gay
Fourteen years-old,
wise beyond our years, old enough
to know our own minds.
unafraid to explore feelings we have
for each other,
sick of being driven to subterfuge,
impatient for that milestone birthday
setting us free
Copyright R. N. Taber 2011
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