So when his father’s old college buddy, Randy, approaches him after the service, Tate expects to hear echoes of the same. Everyone at the funeral shared the same glowing stories of a kind soul. Tate D’Angelo always thought he knew who his father was: beloved doctor, devoted husband and father…. That’s marvelous, no matter how you look at it. There’s a long way yet to go, but it’s still a very different world than the one from my childhood. They can get married, have children, create the family of their choosing. Today, I’m surrounded by friends and family who have an easier time finding acceptance for who they love. But they’re real, and that’s what Rick and I wanted to share with the world. The feelings are often raw and unmanageable. These are the tenets that compel Mark and Randy’s stories, because they fell in love at a time in American history where hard choices had to be made. I learned how love and pain often go so much hand in hand, and I witnessed the kind of strength it took to move on. Though I, as a child, had to watch from the sidelines as someone I loved came out of the closet and was punished for it, the reactions and reverberations it created affected me profoundly. The truth and honesty about the decades in which it takes place were too powerful for me to resist. So when Rick originally approached me about writing this story with him, I jumped at the chance.
Most importantly, I learned that secrets that came out in the open had the power to tear families apart.
The pressure to live up to an outside ideal was enough to mold my goals and achievements until I moved away to college. I’m the product of a rural community in mid-Michigan, coming to age in the 80s in an environment that was rooted in religion and formal education.
With 2017 almost upon us, I find myself marveling at how many ways the world has changed from when I grew up. Don’t forget to check out the great giveaway at the end of this post! Reed stopping by our blog today to talk about their new re release of “Family Obligations”. A warm welcome to authors Vivien Dean and Rick R.
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