my renewed pledge on national coming out day

On National Coming Out Day, I renew my pledge to teach my son (and his little sister) what I didn’t learn at home:

• That the greatest family value is valuing all families.
• That home is a safe place to be yourself.
• To embrace your identity and the identities of others.
• That there is no normal, no different ... there’s who you are and that is unique.
• To speak up for those who are afraid to use their voices and to stand up for those who feel powerless.
• To befriend those who feel alone and are most at-risk for checking out of this world.
  
• To fight for a world where there is no need for closets because there is no longer any reason to hide.