The Backlot Gay Book Forum discussion

The final story in the "Crack the Darkest Sky Wide Open" anthology is a full-hearted paean to gay monogamy. It traces the life of two elderly men, John and Jackie, who have lived seventy-one years in love and faithfulness, and now face together their final hours. Told in a series of flashbacks as they reminisce about their life, it is poignant, with an authenticity startling from an author so young.

As I will tell TJ, who I only know through facebook, this story resonates with me because my husband and I are about halfway there - just 38 years since we met. If we make it to our 80s, we'll reach sixty years together.

Two deep truths come out of this story: all happy relationships end in sadness, for it is the tragedy of human life. Second, and more important, is that only we control the narrative of our lives. We have agency over our own gay history, and living a good life, making our own happiness like John and Jackie's, is the best legacy we can leave on this earth.