tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41676290714485156292024-03-05T21:09:29.135-08:00Listening To Who I AmJonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.comBlogger294125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-75569150491151936562014-01-11T12:00:00.000-08:002014-01-11T12:00:47.331-08:00stepping into light
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JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-30874261545921792072013-12-14T11:32:00.002-08:002013-12-14T11:32:30.788-08:00acceptance that leads to freedom
I had a thought yesterday as I was doing accounting on a Friday afternoon. I think viewing homosexuality as a pathology that can be changed or managed or diminished can keep people trapped in other issues not necessarily related to homosexuality but that can result from not feeling accepted as a gay person (low self esteem, depression, body image issues, addiction, etc).
In some Facebook JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-22415935386852861552013-05-13T13:07:00.002-07:002013-05-13T13:07:34.948-07:00what i wished i'd said at a partyLast night I went to a birthday party. I could be wrong, but I think everyone there was Mormon and most attend a young single adult congregation that I used to attend. At some point early on, the conversation turned toward what had happened that day in Relief Society. (If you’re not Mormon, that’s the meeting at church where all the women gather for a lesson.) Apparently, the woman giving the JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-22764277910742361992013-03-24T09:18:00.000-07:002013-03-24T09:18:38.112-07:00painful progress
So I'm lying here in bed listening to this guy speak in 2000 from the Vermont house chamber about his experience of being an openly gay Vermont legislator when Vermont was debating a civil union bill. This is part of what he said:
"There remains afoot in Vermont prejudice against gay men and lesbians. ... I have been called names in this chamber, in this building, the likes of which I JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-9516083220876251992013-02-05T17:10:00.001-08:002013-02-05T17:10:19.354-08:00working out our own salvation togetherThe following is a post I did for Far Between.
I recently had the opportunity of describing my experience of being gay and Mormon in a stake leadership training meeting. My stake president has been wanting to change the atmosphere in our stake to be friendlier to gay and lesbian members, and as a step in that process he called this meeting and invited bishoprics, relief society presidents, youngJonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-49421919386636832912012-12-09T14:35:00.001-08:002012-12-09T14:35:28.841-08:00going to church with my boyfriend
Last night, the choir I sing with put on a concert at the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Portland (pictured above). After the concert, Ryan and I decided it would be interesting to attend Sunday services. A big part of the reason for me wanting to attend is that it's a gorgeous church with a fantastic organ and beautiful stained glass windows. I kind of wish JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-72537108334191369332012-11-25T18:04:00.001-08:002012-11-25T18:04:35.316-08:00home"A strong community helps people develop a sense of true self, for only in community can the self exercise and fulfill its nature: giving and taking, listening and speaking, being and doing. But when community unravels and we lose touch with one another, the self atrophies and we lose touch with ourselves as well. Lacking opportunities to be ourselves in a web of relationships, our sense of self JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-11674295547039110472012-11-19T12:24:00.000-08:002012-11-19T12:24:05.428-08:00relationships as a mirrorThe benefit of having a blog that is at times a journal is being able to go back and see snapshots of where I’ve been. About a year and a half ago I wrote a post about how I decided that I wanted to go to vulnerable places. Based on limited experiences I’d had being in a relationship with serious romantic undertones (it was a romantic relationship but it wasn’t because I wasn’t allowing myself toJonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-50068262216962606722012-11-04T11:57:00.001-08:002012-11-04T11:57:49.040-08:00the result of being big in a place of tensionI believe that when we keep in mind the ideas espoused in the following quotes, constructive conversations like this can happen.
"By size I mean the stature of your soul, the range and depth of your love, your capacity for relationships. I mean the volume of life you can take into your being and still maintain your integrity and individuality, the intensity and variety of outlook you can JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-74450405404357677302012-10-24T23:21:00.001-07:002012-10-24T23:21:43.712-07:00Confronting What We Don't Know
Have you ever stopped to consider the enormity of what you don’t know? Or what about the things that you don’t even know you don’t know? Overwhelming, right? There’s a certain amount of comfort that comes with believing I know much more than I actually do, in being able to wrap difficult and complex issues up into neat and tidy little packages. Our minds often tend to JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-33872357350219044922012-07-12T12:41:00.000-07:002012-07-12T12:41:19.786-07:00a trailer and a fundraiserWe now have a trailer for Far Between. As stated in the trailer, "Ultimately this film isn't just for homosexual Mormons, it's not about preaching to the choir or the converted, it's for anyone who feels like their life circumstances don't perfectly reconcile with their religious aspirations." I believe everyone can benefit from exploring the questions that the film explores. WeJonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-48730794461276571492012-07-02T13:29:00.000-07:002012-07-02T13:29:13.363-07:00you guys, AC360 is gayIt's interesting to see the way that Anderson Cooper has chosen to come out as gay. As Andrew Sullivan tells it, he and Anderson were having an email exchange about how celebrities are coming out these days, that it isn't as newsworthy as it once was and it's done in more of a muted, subdued fashion. As a matter of fact, Anderson gave Andrew permission to publish Anderson's email in JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-11946583200745902872012-06-24T18:04:00.001-07:002012-06-24T18:04:19.309-07:00safety not guaranteedI saw this movie last night and really liked it. It's got a fantastically creative story with some great writing and really great characters.
Unfortunately for you though, when you see it you probably won't have the added bonus of having Ryan sitting next to you and giggling every time the guy in the back seat so much as appears on screen.
JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-44972617945338563562012-06-21T14:51:00.000-07:002012-06-21T14:51:42.882-07:00far between has a blog!The Far Between website now has a blog which will have new posts each week. I will be contributing regularly to the blog, as will a handful of other people who are all thoughtful, articulate humans. The following is from the introductory post for the blog:
Throughout the process of creating Far Between, it's been apparent that the tone of conversations about the experience of being JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-63528422666597212642012-06-19T13:07:00.001-07:002012-06-19T13:07:38.282-07:00let's talk about you and meI recently read a response to Josh Weed's story at Single Dad Laughing. Dan Pearce, the author of SDL, also wrote a post called I'm Christian Unless You're Gay that made the rounds on the interwebz a while back. I've only read these two posts on this blog, but from what I've read, Dan seems pretty thoughtful and articulate. For me, the most powerful part of the post is the firstJonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-86268716266494290322012-06-15T16:46:00.001-07:002012-06-15T16:46:21.095-07:00a gay mormon momentThe last year or two has been called a Mormon moment by some. If that's true, then the past couple of months have been a gay Mormon moment. I remember the old days when stories like this one and this one would have made the rounds with other gay Mormons, but would have stopped there. Remember when it was like pulling teeth to get anyone who wasn't directly affected by JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-86041335005950703262012-05-26T15:37:00.001-07:002012-05-26T15:37:22.623-07:00just. watch this.This is how it's done in Portland.
JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-7166187087223129602012-05-18T11:37:00.001-07:002012-05-18T11:37:16.454-07:00it's so nice to meet you (or taking your boyfriend to utah)Ryan and I went to Utah last weekend for my friend Ellie's wedding. The weekend was short and packed and lovely. I got to introduce Ryan to my family and vice versa. He also met some of my friends and I met more of his family. It's kind of a right of passage. Bringing someone you love and care about to meet the people who have made up the pieces of your life. JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-41121706970807990392012-05-06T14:19:00.000-07:002012-05-06T14:19:50.649-07:00the sky
You guys, it's true what you've heard. It rains a lot in Portland. For a good chunk of the year, gray skies are pretty much a constant. I actually enjoy the rain though, so Portland and I get along well together. Plus, in the spring you get more sun breaks scattered in with the rain and more cumulonimbus clouds, and it makes for lots of beauty in the skies. I've JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-51642048477501261372012-05-01T15:28:00.000-07:002012-05-01T15:28:04.246-07:00the problem with celibacyI remember a while back having a conversation with another active and orthodox member of the church after Sacrament meeting about the gays. My friend made the point that the brethren have said that we welcome and love those who are same sex attracted. She asked why then some are still so angry at the church and why they don't continue to or come back to attend church JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-74797793355554520672012-04-26T12:34:00.001-07:002012-04-26T12:34:47.606-07:00expanding on perplexity"I remember being surprised by the discovery that attraction isn't necessarily a linear experience, but instead a fluid one, that comes and goes, that takes forms and shapes you can't always control. I never examined my sexuality--which way it leaned--because it just came to me and I let it in, and when it grew heavy, I let it out, like it was the most natural thing in the world."
That is JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-66690964243124177332012-04-15T16:27:00.005-07:002012-04-15T16:29:32.197-07:00far betweenA little over a week ago, the website for Far Between was launched. If you haven't already, you should go and check it out. There are several videos of people sharing their stories and lots of resources. I think the most important part of the site is the collection of people telling their stories. If you don't personally know anyone who is gay, but would like to gain a JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-91306787820978137942012-02-19T10:55:00.000-08:002012-02-19T10:55:36.022-08:00empathy for the lived experienceMy friend Krisanne just posted something lovely about empathy on her blog that got me thinking. Her post was a result of listening to the RadioWest interview that Kendall did back in December with Doug Fabrizio. Her post isn't long, so go read it. You should actually be following her blog anyway because that girl serves it up Krisanne style. By that, I mean you will alwaysJonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-68479885947561159842012-02-14T13:17:00.000-08:002012-02-14T13:17:42.459-08:00meditations on Downton Abbey loveI meditated this morning. It's been a while. I went on a meditation retreat a few weeks ago, but other than that, it's been a while since I sat down and meditated. I like to do it in the morning after I shower, but lately sleep has won out. I fell asleep fairly early last night and was wide awake at 5:45. So I meditated.
One of the things that I like about JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167629071448515629.post-90188121205695362932012-01-18T15:38:00.000-08:002012-01-18T15:38:18.957-08:00shamedI've been really sparse with the blog updates lately. I'm not really apologizing for it though, just acknowledging it. It's partly due to me being super busy at work and partly due to a certain someone who has been a welcome distraction. I'll blog more about that later. For now, I'd like to draw your attention to a documentary that some friends of mine are working on JonJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14158807819966424747noreply@blogger.com4