Surrounded by Family and Fireworks, I Finally Lit the Fuse

A Tiny Love Story, originally published in the New York Times

This is a second post this week, but it’s really, really short. OR, listing to a 70-second reading of it.

Happy Independence Day. Last year I wrote a Tiny Love Story that was published in the New York Times Style Section, digitally on the Modern Love page, July 4, 2024, and in the printed paper on July 7th. Above, I read this 100-word story with the emphasis I had in mind that gets lost between printed punctuation marks.

I left the book on the couch. Mom sparked a conversation. “I see it’s about a gay man. Do you think you might be?” “Doesn’t everyone wonder at some point?” “Perhaps. Uncle Mike is gay; you know we love him.” The book ignited my innermost thoughts but I wasn’t ready. I quietly stored her words like dry fuses. Three years later, on July 4, Uncle Mike’s birthday, with my brother alongside, I declared my independence. “I always knew,” Mom said. “Love you,” Dad replied. Surrounded by family and fireworks, I finally lit the fuse that illuminated my true colors.

Brother Jason at left, Uncle Mike, and me, July 4, 1995.