At age 47, I'd love to spend my summer days and nights with a buddy. I dream of that buddy being around my age so we've had similar life experiences. I dream of us having fun throwing the ball around at the beach, shooting hoops in the hot summer sun, and of course, smelling one
another's ripe manly pits.
At age 26, I had different needs when summer rolled around. I was trying to find out:
who the fuck am I and what about this thing called HIV inside my body? That was 1988. Emotionally, I was still an adolescent boy. And I had just tested HIV-positive.
What did I do that summer of '88? I took off for Cancun, Mexico, for some time off and a reality shift. What happened while I was there? Two straight white teenage boys and their single white mom changed my life forever. And vice versa.
That summer adventure served as inspiration for my second novel,
Bridge Across the Ocean, the
story of a friendship between a black gay and and two white teenage brothers.
Duh!Did I mention I was attracted to the oldest brother? Writing a book about that overwhelming time was the only way to bring it down to whelming.
I'm a man now, and in part,
Bridge Across the Ocean was my bridge to manhood. It's a great summer read and hopefully someday, a heartwarming movie.
As far as what I want for my funky summer of '09, can you say beaches, barbecues, ballgames and a buddy my own age? Buddy, are you out there?
I keep telling myself: somewhere in this world, there's gotta be one man who is as right for me as I am for him. One man who takes one look at me, says, "I gotta see about this guy." And he's gonna want me, regardless of my HIV status, because he knows I am one special man to have and to hold.
