family

  • Neighbors, Not Enemies

    Neighbors, Not Enemies

    You know what has been bothering me lately about the state of things in the United States? How much of what we are living through feels rooted in hating your neighbor. Not debating policy. Not wrestling with ideas. Not even arguing about the direction of the country. It feels personal now. It feels aimed at…

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  • We the People?

    We the People?

    I keep thinking about how different things might feel if we actually lived in a country of ideas. A place where “We the People” meant everyone. Not some of us. Not the protected. Not the powerful. Just all of us. But we never have. And that truth stings more than I want to admit. What…

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  • Two Weeks Left

    Two Weeks Left

    We are in our last two weeks living in Playa del Carmen. In a little over a week the movers will be here, and after that we will head to Querétaro. Lately, our days have been spent going through things, deciding what still belongs with us and what has quietly finished its time. That part…

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  • Did We?

    You know, they say every generation of LGBTQ+ people stands on the shoulders of the accomplishments of the one before it. That is true, at least in part. And yet lately, it can feel as if we have faltered some along the way. I catch myself in those darker hours of the night, when sleep…

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  • Before the Because

    Before the Because

    Stop for a moment. How are you feeling right now? Not what is happening around you. Not what you have been reacting to all day. Just the feeling itself. Are you sad and not entirely sure why? Anxious? Unsettled? Tired in a way sleep does not seem to fix? For this moment, strip away the…

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  • Trying to Stay Human

    Trying to Stay Human

    I do not know. I just feel like a lot of people are carrying more than they let on right now. You can hear it when you talk to them. Even when they say they are fine, there is something underneath it. For me, taking care of myself has stopped being a big idea. It…

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  • Mornings Perfect Light

    Mornings Perfect Light

    Morning light. Quiet house. Everything exactly where it should be. It’s six in the morning and I’m lying here listening to my grandsons sleeping at the foot of the bed. They probably stayed up later than they should have, but we were having too much fun to care. Life doesn’t really prepare you for what…

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  • A Moment for Conscience

    A Moment for Conscience

    I waited until Christmas was over to say this, because some things need room and the right moment to be said. As a son, a father, and a grandfather, I have been sitting with what has unfolded over these past weeks. The continued revelations surrounding the Epstein case, and the effort to minimize or obscure…

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  • Meet Me in St. Louis

    Meet Me in St. Louis

    Every year, for as long as I can remember, I watched Meet Me in St. Louis with my mom. Every Christmas. That was our tradition. She loved that movie. I didn’t realize it at the time, but she was teaching me something. About music. About warmth. About how certain stories quietly become part of who…

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  • Walking With My Father

    Walking With My Father

    I had a dream last night that stayed with me long after I opened my eyes. It felt real in that quiet way some dreams do. In the dream I was walking with my dad at Christmastime. We were at Northwest Plaza in St. Louis, going to see Santa, and I was maybe four years…

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