Focus On The Rainbow

Even after he turned 20, Justin Herren viewed Christmas with childlike wonderment. Back at his family’s home in Tennessee, he and his brother and sister — all three grown up — would rise before dawn to open presents, just like they did as kids.

The family would sing carols around their mother’s piano, soak in a tree trimmed with long-familiar ornaments and reconnect over an elaborate feast.

But when Herren was 22, he sat his family down and told them he is gay. At that moment, the holiday he loves was forever altered.

Five years on, he and his father still barely speak. His mother doesn’t want to hear about his life in Chicago. Instead of a four- or five-night Christmas stay, he flies in for a night and leaves the next day.

“We’re able to be around each other, but it’s just tense,” said Herren, now 27. “To be honest, I’d rather be in a place with people who are happy to have me around, rather than just tolerating me.”

While many view the holidays with a certain amount of familial anxiety, people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender often face a wide array of additional stressors. Some aren’t out of the closet — or have told only a sibling or two — and spend the holiday keeping a whole part of their life and personality locked away. Others must manage parents who don’t approve of their sexuality. And some must be apart from their partner because of unaccepting relatives.

Read the full article at The Chicago Tribune 

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