Tag Archives: coming out story

Michael and Rob, Canyon Country, California

Michael and Rob, photo by Kevin Truong

Michael and Rob, photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

Rob and Michael, photo by Kevin Truong

Rob and Michael, photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

Michael and Rob, photo by Kevin Truong

Michael, in his own words:“Being gay is an attribute like many other attributes, it’s part of who we are, but it isn’t the whole of who we are. Although we, and many others, have faced and overcome challenges as a result of being gay, being attracted to men doesn’t define us unless we allow it. That said, being “gay” is so much more than being attracted to men. Because of the struggle that often comes with it, being gay is to be a master of the heart because you’ve spent so much time repairing your own, being gay means perseverance when everyone is telling you to give up, it means honesty in being true to yourself, it means empathy to those who may have shared your struggle, and it means pride in the value you bring, just as you are, to the community, to your profession, and to your family.

Understanding that I was gay (Michael) took much longer than most and as a result it caused a lot of turmoil in my life and the lives of those around me. Finding a loving, honest relationship, one that feeds my soul and makes me a better person is the single greatest success I’ve realized. I am a very lucky man.

By the time I came out (18 years ago) I had been a leader in the church, I was pre-med, I had been married and divorced, and had experienced such emotional struggles with who I was and who I was expected to be that I simply didn’t want to fight anymore; several times I reached the point that I simply thought that life shouldn’t have to be so hard to live. I had the sense to go get professional counseling, I surrounded myself with people who really did care about me and I got through it. I appreciate my life now so much more because of those hard times and my heart breaks for so many kids that don’t make it through. Coming out is different for everyone and it’s very personal. The key is to remember that life is worth living and you can make it because there are people that want to see you happy, even if they can’t express it the way you need to hear it.

Gays in Canyon Country? I thought we were the token gays here . I really have no idea. We have so many loving straight neighbors that we don’t want for much in Canyon Country. We have our close gay friends that live around the country that we see regularly but in Canyon Country it’s just us and the alpacas; we like it that way I think.

(Advice I’d give my younger self)
a. Calm down, don’t be in such a hurry; spend more time finding yourself and your passions.
b. Don’t be afraid to love – getting it right takes practice,
c. Don’t be afraid to trust-you will be taken advantage of so just get it out of the way now, there are lessons to be learned there,
d. Save more money- growing old with good taste is expensive.”

A Note From Alan and Josh, in Greenville, PA…

“I was raised a real country boy; I learned how to drive a tractor before a car! I always knew I was gay; not all 12 year old boys imagine they’re Judy Garland performing “Over the Rainbow” as the lovable hobo during her Carnegie Hall performance! It wasn’t easy growing up for me; I was called a “faggot”, I had rocks thrown at me, I was pushed into lockers and I hated myself. I never thought I would be able to happy; I thought that being gay was a curse. I have a very supportive family; they loved me before I came out and after. Not all gay boys’ redneck-gun-toting-nascar-football-enthusiast accepts them after they admit the like boys. I survived high school and moved on to college. I had all but given up on finding a relationship; that was until freshman orientation.

I’m not a believer in love at first sight; but, when I turned around at a boring informational meeting I saw him. He smiled at me and that was it. After the meeting I ran back to my dorm room and found him on Myspace, it used to be a thing, his name is Josh! I got his instant messenger and was just about the message him; when he beat me to the punch. From that moment we were inseparable. The four years flew by. We finished school and moved to the city. To live the life I thought I wanted. We quickly found out that graduating with a bachelor’s degree during an economical repression was not easy. We began fighting; and grew apart. I thought moving back to Greenville would solve our problems and it did, for a little bit. Life after college still proved to be hard; we jumped from job to job and then the lying and the cheating started.

The constant lying and dodging had come to a halt when we had to finally admit that we weren’t happy. We broke up; I tried dating, but every guy I met for coffee, dinner, or terrible Channing Tatum movie couldn’t compare to Josh.

On January 10, 2013 I realized just how much Josh meant to me. I got the phone call that changed everything. Josh’s smart car was struck from the right side when a semi-truck failed to stop at a red light. He was in a coma for 18 days; I sat by his side every night. I waited for him to wake up-all I wanted to see were those bright blue eyes and that smile that I had fallen in love with. Life had come to a halt as I waited. Friends and family rallied together to give me support. When he first woke up; I was getting ready to leave for the night. I told him good night and that I loved him; his eyes shot opened, he grabbed my hand and mouthed “I love you”. It was love at second sight; I knew that we what we had and what we have is real love. For three months our lives became an endless cycle of doctors, hospitals, and rehabs. Josh finally came home in March and is making a full recovery.

Our lives are slowly settling back into some semblance of normalcy. We are planning on getting married next year. Our lives will never be the same; there isn’t a day that goes by when I don’t think about the accident and how lucky I am to still have the love of my life. I also now realize how important our fight is; when I first arrived at the hospital I was almost denied from seeing Josh; they barely gave me information and his parents had talked about moving him back home. These are things that devastate me still.

I can’t wait to marry Josh; the love of my life. This is just the beginning of our story; I can’t wait to where it takes us.”

photo by Alan and Josh

photo by Alan and Josh


photo provided by Alan and Josh

photo provided by Alan and Josh

Dwayne, Optician/Manager/Buyer/Stylist, Los Angeles

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

Dwayne, in his own words: “I am the only boy out of Nine older sisters, and the baby at that. Being gay was just the way I was born. At 11, I was watching a beauty pageant and I remember saying to my sisters that the host was very beautiful, and they just looked at me and said men are not beautiful they are handsome, and I said no he is beautiful.

Growing up in Venice, California and being raised Southern Baptist, I thought it was not okay to be gay. That’s when my mother and my sisters said to me it does not matter who you are or what you are, we love you and god loves you.

I still have friends that I grew up with, one in particular named Bo. Bo and l loved to play flight attendants on the Santa Monica Bus line. We would board at Mark Twain Jr. High School with our scarves and our Pam Am bags and proceed to drive the bus driver crazy as we ran up and down the aisles of the bus calming down the passengers. This was really something that had to be seen.

My first actual relationship was at 32 with Jon M. Buhek. I had never felt the way I felt with him. That was love and we were together for seventeen years, but unfortunately we had to part ways. I still miss him, but life must go on.

My life now is so wonderful. I have the greatest group of friends and I just love when we get together and just have fun. At 48, I now know what I want and that’s to be in love again and in a life-long partnership. “