How This Young Gay Man Forgave His Father For Forcing Him To Endure Hell Of Conversion Therapy

If your father forced you to endure years of conversion therapy that caused you to become estranged from your mother and sister, nearly flunk out of school, and ultimately become depressed and suicidal, could you find it in yourself to forgive him? Mathew Shurka did.

Sadly, conversion therapy stories are all too common–as are those of suicidal gay teens. What’s new in Mathew’s story is that instead of living a life of anger and resentment, he found a way to turn the other cheek. By identifying the source of his father’s feelings that led his father to send his own son to conversion therapy in the first place, he found a way to bring them together again. The source of the father’s feelings? Fear for his son’s well-being.

With Mathew’s few simple words–“I’m going to be okay”–his father’s fear melted away, leaving behind a badly damaged but repairing father-son relationship.

Watch the video:

Mathew’s story is one of nearly 900 stories collected and shared by I’m From Driftwood, The LGBTQ Story Archive.

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