Last Sunday was a very special Father’s Day for Micah Porter and his 17-year-old son, also named Micah. The two marched for the first time together in the Denver Pride Parade as two proud, openly-gay men.
Now, Micah Sr., who works as the athletic director at Northfield High School in Colorado, has written a powerful letter to his son,a high school gymnast, swimmer and competes in track & field, published by Outsports.
“This past weekend was a Father’s Day I thought would only occur in my dreams,” the letter begins. “You gave me the gift of authenticity, courage and a son’s love. From the deepest realms of my heart, thank you. I overflow with pride.”
Micah Sr. goes on to say that he always knew his son was gay.
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He writes:
I knew you were gay when you were a young boy. I saw you be your authentic self every day and challenge every notion of normativity I knew. Untarnished by a society that had boxed gender and sexuality into different camps, you were just yourself. You were Micah. I want to apologize for any disapproval I gave as you advocated to just be you.
Looking back, Micah Sr. says watching his own son accept his sexuality with such ease helped to awaken feelings in himself that he had been keeping buried.
You were my first teacher about the importance of loving oneself. I have never told you this, but you had an impact on me that is ultimately beyond words. My arduous journey to embrace my sexuality and love myself as a gay man began with you. Son, you inspired me to confront my fraudulent life and begin to be proud of who I truly was.
Micah Sr. came out when he son was 11 years old. He describes it as “difficult,” “painful,” and “a complete reset on our lives,” but ultimately it helped bring the two even closer together.
Their bond was strengthened a few years later when Micah Jr. finally came out.
Your own journey has been incredible to witness as your father. Two years ago, you told me you were gay. We hugged, we cried, and we bonded like we never had before. My heart beamed with joy that night from Grammy and Grandpa Porter’s home in North Carolina. I went to bed with a love in my heart that finally felt free.
Last weekend, the guys marched together with Outsports in the Denver Pride Parade wearing Nike BeTrue shirts. It was a moment he tells his son he’ll never forget.
“Thank you, son, for being exactly who you are,” he writes. “Thank you for teaching me about love, courage and what it means to be an authentic person.”
He concludes by writing:
I know we will have many more Father’s Days together, but none will be the same as 2017 when we marched together for Pride. On that day, this father’s pride beamed brighter than he ever imagined possible.
I love you.
Photo credit: Facebook
h/t: Outsports
Richard 55
Congrats to the wonderful father and son!!
But isn’t the dad bisexual? If he chooses to identify as gay, that’s his option…but he made his son with a woman, didn’t he?!
Sluggo2007
Many gay men used to marry women to hide their sexuality. I had a partner who was married to a woman for 14 years. He said that, at the time he got married (1960s), you didn’t even THINK about coming out and he wanted children. They managed to have 3. However, he always knew he was gay.
Hermes
Many, many gay men spend years pretending to be straight. Pathela and Others is the last major study to verify (in their case by accident) that more than 2 men are closeted, but gay, for every ONE that is out. One of the things that emerges from that, and the ultimate concealment, is not a woman, its having children.
Hermes
Celtic
Does it actually matter? WHY must you qualify? You are part of the reason there continues to be so much strife even within the gay “community” — as if there really is such a thing. You exemplify that crowd of box fitters who insist, “Oh! You must be this. You must be that. You can’t possibly be . . . whatever.”
Claude
There are no stupid questions, however naive or uninformed. He asked a question that many people have based on erroneous assumptions. It was answered. Now if he doesn’t accept the answer then I agree with you wholeheartedly. But let’s not attack someone for asking a question.
Danny595
“Untarnished by a society that had boxed gender and sexuality into different camps, you were just yourself. ”
WTF is he talking about? His son is a man. Why is he even bringing up gender? Is he suggesting that his son is something other than a man just because he is gay?
GayEGO
Such a beautiful father son relationship!
silveroracle
Agreed. Beautiful story.
salumbre
Beautiful story. And Dad is red hot! 🙂
readycarlos
They’re both dreamy!
John
Ask myself what if everyday, what a great story and please don’t give any credance to the haters that commented ugly hate, we all know what karma is and does. I hope we all find the love that makes us as happy everlasting.
Celtic
This is very, very emotionally moving and uplifting. Now 73, I came out 49 years ago this summer with my first partner. Scary as hell. I often have wondered about my father’s sexual orientation. Let’s face it, he was born into an Indiana farming family when being queer might have been a death stroke. Yet, he was gifted musically on the violin which he played both jig and classical. He loved opera. He was horrified when I announced in my junior year of high school that I wanted to study theater arts at Cornell. That did not turn out so well. I joined the Air Force upon graduation. That pissed him off even more! My mother periodically remarked how my old man “feared” me, for which I had no explanation. I believe that “fear” stemmed from the fact he had known from the time I was a little boy that I was different. It likely scared hell out of him that his little boy might be more attractive than he could admit even to himself, causing a huge breach in our father/son relationship as I reached puberty and “became a man.” The father / son duo in this article tell a wonderful story about a journey that at times was horribly tormenting. God Bless You both! Of course, I can hear all those right wing faux Xtians turning this into some lurid tale. Sad how they simply can’t accept the fact that most of us are not as crude and demented as most of them.