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WATCH: A Dad’s 1959 Advice to His Gay Son Changed Him Forever

WATCH: A Dad’s 1959 Advice to His Gay Son Changed Him Forever

the-saint-of-dry-creek

The wise words one gay man's father once spoke to him have had a profound effect on him for many, many years.

byraffy

If you've ever had to go through an awkward coming-out to a close family member, then you will definitely relate to StoryCorps' newest animated short, "The Saint of Dry Creek."

In the endearing clip, Patrick Haggerty recalls a conversation from 1959, in which his father -- a dairy farmer from Washington State -- gave the gay young man some sage advice about always being yourself.

"Don't sneak, because if you sneak, it means you think you're doing the wrong thing," Haggerty remembers his father telling him, after an incident where he pretended not to know his father at an assembly performance at his school. "If you run around spending your whole life thinking you're doing the wrong thing, then you'll ruin your immortal soul."

"Out of all the things a father in 1959 could have told his gay son, my father tells me to be proud of myself and not sneak," Haggerty continued. "He knew where I was headed, and he knew that making me feel bad about it in any way was the wrong thing to do. I had the patron saint of dads for sissies!"

StoryCorps was founded by Dave Isay as a project that encourages people to share their personal tales and record them for posterity. In a TED Talk, Isay cited the the tales of Stonewall and his own father's coming-out as inspiration for the multimedia program.

Watch the Haggerty's inspiring StoryCorps short below and visit the StoryCorps website for more heartfelt tales.

byraffy
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Raffy Ermac

Raffy is a Los Angeles native and magazine enthusiast who loves to write about pop culture, entertainment, fashion, and all things Rihanna.
Raffy is a Los Angeles native and magazine enthusiast who loves to write about pop culture, entertainment, fashion, and all things Rihanna.