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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Matter of Opinion

“I Knew I Was Different”

Hope everyone out there had a chance to read a beautifully written guest column on today's letters pages by Phillip Brock, administrator of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Spokane.

It's about his journey as a gay man growing up with the knowledge he was different. It also sketches how far our society has come in acceptance.

Excerpt:

When I told my mom, she cried, because her vision of what she had wanted for me was now very different, but mostly because she was scared about how I would be treated.

Two years later, my mom and I ended up sharing an apartment together. Tony, a guy from out of town that I was dating, had just left, and she and I were watching television. We had not talked about my being gay since the day that I came out to her. Suddenly, in the silence, she said, "You know what, Phillip? I like Tony much better than any of the girls you ever dated. I'm glad that you are happy."
My relationship with Tony didn't work out, but my mom and I grew closer from that moment on until the day that she died.



A Matter of Opinion is really a matter of three opinions – those held by the people responsible for the opinion pages of The Spokesman-Review. Check in regularly to find out what they’re up to, what they think and where they differ and to joust with them if you want.