It's not only okay to be gay... It can be great to be gay!

No matter where on earth you live, no matter your race, your religion, your gender, your age, it is always okay to be gay. In fact it is much more than okay to be gay, it's often great to be gay.

This web site is my gift to everyone on the planet. It was created on the 10th anniversary of my own coming out, and at the dawn of this new Millennium.

My goal is to share with gay and straight people everywhere that it is always always, always okay to be gay. "The Truth About Gay People" is a book in progress. Every now and then I'll post another chapter. The goal is to help move the world from false and harmful beliefs to the liberating freedom of truth.


Here's the book's introduction - enjoy!


The day I heard one of the most powerful politicians in the country equate Gay and Lesbian Americans, to kleptomaniacs and alcoholics, I knew it was time for a book like this. I asked myself how someone who is well educated, aware of current events and who makes decisions that effects the lives of millions of people could be so ignorant about gay people. Then I realized that he was not alone. That there are thousands if not millions of people in this world who carry around a set of out dated ill formed beliefs and who if given the chance could come to see the truth.


There is a yearning for the truth. I have found my straight friends and coworkers fascinated and hanging on my every word when I dare to share my truth about being gay. They ask questions out of ignorance that to many a gay person seem silly. But they are the questions so many Americans are afraid to ask.


This book answers all the questions, the silly and the serious. If you are trying to understand someone who is gay this book will help. If you just want to know the truth about gay people here it is. If you fear you are gay, odds are you are gay and there's plenty in this book to help you come to terms with who you've always been. If your son or daughter told you they were gay then handed you this book, welcome to the club. Know that you are not alone. No one book can change the course of history or make the world a perfect place, but the truth is a powerful thing. When we start speaking the truth about gay people magical things can happen and the history of hate and shame can begin to change.


Before you read any further give yourself a pat on the back for having read this far and for being willing to hear the truth. Thank you for opening your mind as you open this book.

- Rick Reynolds, CCHT

Thursday, January 11, 2007

Being Gay is A Lifestyle Choice

Before we go any further, a confession. Each of these chapter titles is a false belief
There are choices we make as human beings everyday, but there are also certain things that we don't sit down and choose. Scientists and psychologists are spending huge sums of money and time looking for the cause of homosexuality. Trying to figure out why some people are gay. But all you need to do to figure it out is to talk to gay people. There may in this world be a handful of straight people who make a choice to live a gay lifestyle, but the majority of gay people would tell you if asked that they did not choose to be gay. They would not say that they woke up one day and decided that they were attracted to the same gender. In fact most gay people find the whole notion of choosing your sexual orientation kind of crazy.

Think about it. When did you choose your sexual orientation? At what point did you decide which sex you would be attracted to? If you ever thought you were attracted to the same sex, but then chose to be attracted just to the opposite sex, I would dare guess that you my friend are likely gay.

Being gay in many ways is like being left-handed. For the left handed person, there are movements and ways of doing things that come naturally, but if forced to, a left handed person can learn to act right handed. And once they've mastered the art of acting right handed, using their left hand becomes a matter of choice. But that doesn't mean that they are right handed.

There was a time in our society when it was not okay to be left-handed. There were many left handed people who were forced to use their right hand and made to feel shameful about being left-handed. There were even those who called left handedness a sin. Today there are studies that show that left handed people who suppress their left handedness suffer psychologically, are more apt to commit suicide, and have a harder time learning. Luckily today, we know the truth about being left handed and don't force our young lefties to use their right hands.

But today in America there are a great number of people convinced that being gay is a choice. This faulty belief comes at a great cost. There are thousands if not millions of gay people trying to be straight. Gay people who marry, have children and find themselves trapped in a life of lies. Gay teenagers who try yet fail to be straight and end up killing themselves.

As human beings we all have free will. When it comes to being gay there are choices that gay people make. A gay person can choose to be honest and express their same sex attraction or to be dishonest and live a lie. They can choose to keep their sexual orientation a secret or they can choose to be both open and honest.

The truth and new belief you may choose to now accept is:

Being Openly gay is an honest Choice.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

There was a time I thought that a gay marriage was a challenge to "normal" marriage. One evening I sat and watched my wife doing something - I don't remember what - and I thought how much I loved her and how fortunate that we spend our lives together and NOTHING WILL CHANGE our relation. That evening I realized if 2 gays wanted to experience that joy I experience it will have no effect on my relation with my wife. I abandoned my old opinions and attitudes regarding gays. Since gays are subject to the same laws, pay taxes and complain about the same things I do - well then who am I to judge their private personal choices whatever the reasons?

C. M. Banner said...

I am eighteen. My original attraction was to the opposite sex. Although in the third grade I had a crush on a fellow classmate of the same sex. I don't think of my sexual orientation or talk about it very much. I am almost convinced I am bisexual. A piece of me wonders if maybe I'm a lesbian, but I am not too concerned with finding out. For the most part my sexual orientation is an easy subject to talk about, but it doesn't come up often. I think, maybe, (maybe) convincing myself I am bisexual is what I'm comfortable with because I've been some-what informed about how life is for gays/lesbians in America. My mother is a lesbian. My perception of the gay/lesbian lifestyle is that it can feel constricting and rough at times. I've been looking in from the back window though. My knowledge about what gays/lesbians experience on daily basis is almost none at all. It's borderline ignorant, in fact. I've been sort of talking about them like they are another species. However, they're just human beings like all of us. Feeling ashamed of ourselves, I think, is what most of us go through in some portions of our lives. I think it's obvious to assume a gay or lesbian person in America can have extra difficulties that straight people don't experience. Being gay or lesbian is a lifestyle, but I don't think it defines who they are. Gay or lesbian is just one's sexual orientation. Sexual orientation shouldn't have any sort of special existence in our society. I don't think the gay and lesbian lifestyle should be an issue. Those are just my thoughts and opinions though.

Rick Reynolds, CCHT said...

There's a lot of talk of their being a gay or lesbian lifestyle but from my personal experience there seems to be as many gay or lesbian lifestyles as there are straight life styles.

I know singles who go to clubs all the time, couples who own farms and raise kids. when you add in ethnicity the variety of lifestyles gays and lesbians live is infinite.

I'm not exactly sure what people picture when they say "The Gay Lifestyle". Is this something seen on Showtime or in a movie or a book?

I know many straight people make all these assumptions about the lives of gay people and the reality is much more boring then they've imagined.

My partner and I live a prety normal life. The two of us, our two cats, laundry, yard work, cooking cleaning, working, tme spent with friends and family gay and straight. Yawn... maybe we're not living up to our stereo type... lol.