Hey, heads up. This episode contains mentions of gun violence and suicide. So please take care

while listening.

The first time I came out, I was saying, I'm your exact same son and I'm gay. This is

a little bit more like saying, I'm not the person you think I am. And that's, I think

that's more likely to be hurtful.

This is Beth Sex and Money. The show from WNYC about the things we think about a lot and

need to talk about more. I'm Anna Seale.

A listener were calling Jack. First came out as gay to his parents when he was 19. At

the time he was in his first semester of college and home for Thanksgiving break in West

Virginia. He didn't know how it was going to go. And beforehand, he made sure he could

cover his living expenses in case his parents cut him off. But the conversation ended up

going better than he expected. Then in his early 30s, Jack started to feel like there was

something else he needed to reveal to his dad. After growing up in a family where guns

were a big part of life for hunting, collecting and recreational shooting, Jack no longer felt

comfortable being around firearms.

It's not something that I spend any time with anymore. And so the thing I need to talk

to him about is that I don't really want to own guns anymore and I don't really want

to go shooting. I don't want that to be a big part of my life.

He told me about this in an episode we first ran in 2021. About the urgency he felt to

tell his dad and also about his fears if how his dad would react. And the two years

since, Jack told me recently, a lot of that has shifted.

When I listened back to it, I sent off the email saying it felt a little cringey I think

...