Happiest Season

John: Hey, Harper not coming out to her parents has nothing to do with you.

Abby: How could it not?

John: Remind me, what did your parents say when you told them you were gay?

Abby: Um, that they loved and supported me.

John: That's amazing! My dad kicked me out of the house and didn't talk to me for 13 years after I told him. Everybody's story is different. There's your version and my version, and everything in between. But the one thing all of those stories have in common is that moment right before you say those words. When your heart is racing and you don't know what's coming next. That moment's really terrifying! And once you say those words, you can't un-say them. A chapter has ended, and a new one's begun. You have to be ready for that. You can't do it for anyone else.

[pauses]

John: Just because Harper isn't ready doesn't mean she never will be, and it doesn't mean she doesn't love you.