~Abomination, by Matthew R. D
“At a recent Columbus Gay Men’s Chorus rehearsal, I realized how much I hate the word ‘abomination’.
Our March 2013 concert, Until There’s A Cure, will feature a Stephen Schwartz piece called Testimony. Testimony sets to music many phrases and feelings from the It Gets Better Project.
Reading or singing ‘I am an abomination’ – a phrase I uttered more than once as a teenager – is like getting sucker punched. ‘Abomination’ brims with horrifying memories of religious fanatics and fools. It is a word full of suicidal self-loathing, and deeply insidious harm. It’s the word that minister used every week when he counseled me. It’s the word that circled & swelled in my head telling me to give up when I was 17.
I’m glad I didn’t give up when I was 17. I’m glad I grew up to be me. I’m grateful that I am an out gay man, and that I’m the exact me I’m meant to be. I’m grateful for my friends, family, and for the LGBT community.
I’m especially grateful for this realization:
I have never been, and I will never, ever be, an ‘abomination.'”
You Will Rise Project 
Wow! What a powerful post. Thank you.And, I, too, have never been, nor shall ever be an “abomination.”
“I have never been, and I will never, ever be, an 'abomination.'” = TRIUMPH