Libby Anne<\/a> had grown up in a similar Christian conservative environment, and had changed a lot of what she believed over time. She seemed very open and friendly, and she was an atheist, so I had hopes that she wouldn\u2019t condemn me unheard. We met in person with Libby and her husband, and hit it off just fine. I broached the topic of LGBTQ rights and she seemed very caring and open. Before I told her our secret, I reminded myself that she was someone I had just met, and if she reacted in a really hateful way, I didn\u2019t have to see her ever again. That gave me the courage to just come out and say it.\u00a0But she was completely accepting of our story, and she became someone I could chat with about all the questions. It was a relief to be completely open with someone, and it seemed to bolster my courage.<\/p><\/blockquote>\nDid you see that, did you see that? I get a mention! I now count Melissa as a dear friend and we frequently correspond via email and phone. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Part 8 of Melissa\u2019s story,\u00a0Unwrapping the Onion, is now posted. This one is titled Coming Out, Bit by Bit.\u00a0\u00a0Here is an excerpt: The summer of 2011 was significant in another way too. I had arranged to meet up with a friend that I had made over the internet, and I was planning on maybe coming […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":845,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[112],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-social-justice"],"yoast_head":"\n
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