A big Christian rock star came out in this stunningly emotional letter.
Eric March
"Most of us reach at least one pivotal moment in our lives that better defines who we are."
Photo by 12matamoros/Pixabay.
So wrote Trey Pearson, a bestselling Christian rock artist, in a letter to his fans revealing that he is gay.
Pearson, 35, who fronts the band Everyday Sunday and "grew up in a very conservative Christian home," said he has known he was gay for over 20 years.
Photo via ҚЯĀŽΨÇÉV13/Wikimedia Commons.
Even while hiding his sexuality, as a teenager, Pearson said he found solace in the loving depiction of close male friendships in the Bible.
"I found so much comfort as a teen in 1 Samuel 18-20 and the intimacy of Jonathan and David," he wrote in the letter, first published in Religion News Service.
While Pearson says he doesn't know what coming out will mean for his marriage and his career, he knew he could no longer deny who he was.
Though he wrote that he regrets the confusion and pain his wife has endured as a result of his announcement, Pearson realized that coming out wasn't just the right thing to do, it was the only thing for him to do.
Here's the full, gripping text of his letter (emphasis mine):
To my fans and friends:
Most of us reach at least one pivotal moment in our lives that better defines who we are.
These last several months have been the hardest — but have also ended up being the most freeing months — of my life.
To make an extremely long story short, I have come to be able to admit to myself, and to my family, that I am gay.
I grew up in a very conservative Christian home where I was taught that my sexual orientation was a matter of choice, and had put all my faith into that. I had never before admitted to myself that I was gay, let alone to anyone else. I never wanted to be gay. I was scared of what God would think and what all of these people I loved would think about me; so it never was an option for me. I have been suppressing these attractions and feelings since adolescence. I've tried my whole life to be straight. I married a girl, and I even have two beautiful little kids. My daughter, Liv, is six and my son, Beckham, is two.
I had always romanticized the idea of falling in love with a woman; and having a family had always been my dream. In many ways, that dream has come true. But I have also come to realize a lot of time has passed in my life pushing away, blocking out and not dealing with real feelings going on inside of me. I have tried not to be gay for more than 20 years of my life. I found so much comfort as a teen in 1 Samuel 18-20 and the intimacy of Jonathan and David. I thought and hoped that such male intimacy could fulfill that void I felt in my desire for male companionship. I always thought if I could find these intimate friendships, then that would be enough.
Then I thought everything would come naturally on my wedding night. I honestly had never even made out with a girl before I got married. Of course, it felt anything but natural for me. Trying not to be gay, has only led to a desire for intimacy in friendships which pushed friends away, and it has resulted in a marriage where I couldn't love or satisfy my wife in a way that she needed. Still, I tried to convince myself that this was what God wanted and that this would work. I thought all of those other feelings would stay away if I could just do this right.
When Lauren and I got married, I committed to loving her to the best of my ability, and I had the full intention of spending the rest of my life with her. Despite our best efforts, however, I have come to accept that there is nothing that is going to change who I am.
I have intensely mixed feelings about the changes that have resulted in my life. While I regret the way I was taught to handle this growing up, how much it has hurt me and the unintentional pain I have brought Lauren, I wouldn't have the friendship I now have with her, and we wouldn't have our two amazing, beautiful children. But if I keep trying to push this down it will end up hurting her even more.
I am never going to be able to change how I am, and no matter how healthy our relationship becomes, it's never going to change what I know deep down: that I am gay. Lauren has been the most supportive, understanding, loving and gracious person I could ever ask for, as I have come to face this. And now I am trying to figure out how to co-parent while being her friend, and how to raise our children.
I have progressed so much in my faith over these last several years. I think I needed to be able to affirm other gay people before I could ever accept it for myself. Likewise, I couldn't expect others to accept me how I am until I could come to terms with it first.
I know I have a long way to go. But if this honesty with myself about who I am, and who I was made by God to be, doesn't constitute as the peace that passes all understanding, then I don't know what does. It is like this weight I have been carrying my whole life has been lifted from me, and I have never felt such freedom.
In sharing this publicly I'm taking another step into health and wholeness by accepting myself, and every part of me. It's not only an idea for me that I'm gay; It's my life. This is me being authentic and real with myself and other people. This is a part of who I am.
I hope people will hear my heart, and that I will still be loved. I'm still the same guy, with the same heart, who wants to love God and love people with everything I have. This is a part of me I have come to be able to accept, and now it is a part of me that you know as well. I trust God to help love do the rest.
– Trey
Pearson is one of several Christian rock stars to come out in the past few years.
Christian recording artist Vicky Beeching came out in 2014. Photo by Greg on the Run/Flickr.
Like them, he faces an uphill battle. Many of Pearson's cohorts who have declared themselves openly gay — including Anthony Williams, Jennifer Knapp, Ray Boltz, and Vicky Beeching — have seen their careers stall out as some churches and faith-based radio stations refuse to play their music, according to a Washington Post report.
Though Pearson knows he now faces a number of new challenges, he wants fans to know he hasn't changed.
"I'm still the same guy, with the same heart, who wants to love God and love people with everything I have," Pearson wrote.
Above all else, he hopes his fans will accept him as he has finally learned to accept himself.
Trey Pearson (center) with bandmates Nick Spencer (left) and Tyler Craft. Photo by Y so srys?/Wikimedia Commons.
"I trust God to help love do the rest," Pearson wrote.
Professional tidier Marie Kondo says she's 'kind of given up' after having three kids
Hearing Kondo say, 'My home is messy,' is sparking joy for moms everywhere.
Marie Kondo/YouTube
Marie Kondo playing with her daughters.
Marie Kondo's book, "The Life-Changing Art of Tidying Up," has repeatedly made huge waves around the world since it came out in 2010. From eliminating anything that didn't "spark joy" from your house to folding clothes into tiny rectangles and storing them vertically, the KonMari method of maintaining an organized home hit the mark for millions of people. The success of her book even led to two Netflix series.
It also sparked backlash from parents who insisted that keeping a tidy home with children was not so simple. It's one thing to get rid of an old sweater that no longer brings you joy. It's entirely another to toss an old, empty cereal box that sparks zero joy for you, but that your 2-year-old is inexplicably attached to.
To be fair, Kondo never forced her way into anyone's home and made them organize it her way. But also to be fair, she didn't have kids when she wrote her best-selling book on keeping a tidy home. The reality is that keeping a home organized and tidy with children living in it is a whole other ballgame, as Kondo has discovered now that she has three kids of her own.
"My home is messy," she admitted in a recent webinar, according to The Washington Post, "but the way I am spending my time is the right way for me at this time at this stage of my life."
Despite the Schadenfreude many parents may feel at Kondo's confession that kids change things, her reasoning for letting things go is actually right in line with her philosophy of embracing joy.
"Up until now, I was a professional tidier, so I did my best to keep my home tidy at all times," she said. "I have kind of given up on that in a good way for me. Now I realize what is important to me is enjoying spending time with my children at home."
Kondo has offered tips for tidying with kids at home since she became a mom, and they're pretty solid. But as any parent can attest, some children are naturally neater than others, and how many kids you have makes a big difference as well.
Kondo gave birth to her third child in 2021, so she's currently in the adorable hell that is toddlerland. Research has also found that parents of three kids are the most stressed, so if Kondo has found a way to enjoy time with her kids and create more balance in her life by letting go of her tidiness standards, more power to her.
Her new book, "Marie Kondo's Kurashi at Home: How to Organize Your Space and Achieve Your Ideal Life," focuses on designing your living space so it works for you. "Kurashi" loosely translates to "way of life" or "the ideal way of spending our time," and Kondo says it's about seeing the world through the lens of what matters most.
"I believe that when we consciously cherish something precious, we deepen our relationship with it," she shares on her website. "This, in turn, deepens our bonds with other things in our lives, bringing out the best in them and in ourselves."
Applying that philosophy to family, Kondo's "giving up" on tidying all the time makes perfect sense. If spending quality time with your children sparks more joy than keeping your belongings organized just so, then that's what you should do.
Kudos to Kondo for publicly acknowledging that having kids has altered how her home looks and for validating what so many parents have felt in the face of unrealistic expectations of tidiness. She could have kept up a front of always being on top of organization and having a perpetually tidy home, but she didn't. Here's to her willingness to share the reality, here's to embracing joy in the fleeting time we have with our children, and here's to letting go of the rules that might interfere with that, even if it means humbly admitting defeat in the face of our kids' messes.
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YouTube star MrBeast sponsors 1,000 people's cataract surgery to help them see again
"I had never heard of MrBeast so I almost hung up. But gratefully did not hang up."
MrBeast YouTube Screenshot
YouTube star sponsors 1,000 people's cataract surgery
Blindness touches people's lives around the world and YouTube star Jimmy Donaldson, more popularly known as MrBeast, is trying to do something about it. Donaldson made it his mission to help 1,000 people regain their eyesight with the help of Dr. Jeff Levenson, an ophthalmologist and surgeon in Jacksonville, Florida.
Levenson has been operating a program called "Gift of Sight" for over 20 years. The program provides free cataract surgery to uninsured people who are legally blind for free, so long as they meet certain criteria. Levenson had never heard of Donaldson, and he almost hung up on him when the YouTube star called to ask about a partnership.
"I had never heard of MrBeast so I almost hung up. But gratefully did not hang up," Levenson told CNN.
After figuring out that Donaldson was indeed a real person who wanted to help others, the duo called around the Jacksonville area to determine the people who needed help the most. They got their list of clients from free clinics and homeless shelters, which covered the United States portion of the surgeries.
Donaldson and Levenson were able to provide surgery to 40 people in Florida, and if you know anything about MrBeast, you know that some of those folks left with more than just their eyesight. Several of the patients, who were just thrilled to have their eyesight back, were gifted with thousands of dollars. In the video, one woman fell to the floor when Donaldson told her that he was also giving her $10,000, and another family burst into tears when he handed over a $50,000 check for college tuition. One teen was given his first car, a Tesla.
Person holding eyeglasses in front of eye chart
Photo by David Travis on Unsplash
The enormous act of kindness didn't stop with Florida. Levenson is also the chief medical officer of SEE International, an organization that provides free eye care internationally. It was through this nonprofit that Donaldson was able to help other patients in need in several countries including Mexico, Jamaica, Vietnam and Brazil, among others.
Not all blindness is curable, but in the video, Levenson tells Donaldson, "Half of all blindness in the world is people who need a 10-minute surgery."
This means that those who don't have the means to afford this surgery may simply have to resign themselves to being blind, even though there's a quick cure. And Levenson knows firsthand what it feels like to lose your vision due to cataracts because he also had to have the surgery years ago, which sparked his passion for helping others see again.
Donaldson is known for his generosity and has amassed over 130 million subscribers on his YouTube page, so it's not a surprise that he would try to team up with Levenson to do more good. After all the surgeries were complete, Donaldson had achieved his goal of curing 1,000 people of blindness, but he had one more gift in store.
At the end of the video, MrBeast was back in Florida with Levenson when he dropped unsuspected news on the doctor. Donaldson had donated $100,000 to Levenson's organization.
"It'll bring sight to thousands of people," Levenson replied with his hand over his chest.
Watch the moving video below:
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Parenting hack: Mom makes edible sensory play sand by putting Cheerios in a blender
No sandbox? No problem.
via ElleTheVirgo/TikTok
A mom makes sensory sand by putting Cheerios in a blender.
A parenting influencer who goes by the name @ellethevirgo on TikTok has shared a brilliant hack that can turn a simple box of Cheerios into a fun sensory sand experience. The great part is that the sand is edible, so you don't have to worry if your child puts some in their mouth, which they will inevitably do.
The recipe for Cheerios sensory sand is pretty simple:
Grab a box of Cheerios (avoid honey nut flavor unless you want your kid to have a sticky sensory experience).
Grind the cereal by dumping it into a blender or food processor. You can also get a rockier texture by putting it in a sealable bag and grinding it with a rolling pin.
Pour the sand into a bin and add some scoops and containers for the full sensory experience.
Now, here's where we'll include our mandatory disclaimer: Children should only play with the sensory sand under adult supervision. Always make sure the bin is clean and the sand is replaced before every use.
Parents on TikTok couldn't believe they hadn't heard of the hack before.
"Yess!! So if she accidentally eats the sand it's ok bc it's freaking Cheerios," Nelly Gomez wrote.
"Wait, what? Holy hell this is genius," Momma Cusses added.
@ellethevirgo
🌞🐠🌴 #fyp #sensoryplay #upcycling
A few commenters were concerned that the sensory sand may encourage small children to eat real sand. This is a legitimate criticism because, according to doctors, sand can be a choking hazard. "Isn't she going to be trained that all sand will taste like Cheerio dust now?" Eric asked.
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Gaël Monfils makes tennis a must-see with his entertaining antics
His nickname, "The Entertainer," is fitting.
Tennis Legend TikTok screenshots
Gaël Monfils makes tennis a must-see.
Tennis isn't always the most entertaining sport to watch, especially if you're not particularly interested in seeing a ball get slapped across a net at 1,000,000 mph approximately 17,000 times. You could probably get whiplash or eye strain if you focused too hard on it. While some people love the sport, others need a little more than grunts and sneaker sounds to capture their attention.
If you're in the group of people who need to be entertained, look no further than Gaël Monfils, a professional French tennis player that has earned the nickname, "The Entertainer." Monfils turned pro in 2004 and has multiple championship matches under his belt, and yet he still takes the time to be...extra while playing.
In a compilation video uploaded to TikTok, we see the 36-year-old tennis player dancing after hitting the ball across the net just out of his opponent's reach. But of course, he also doesn't hit the ball like your average player, either. In one part of the video, Monfils jumps up extremely high and bicycle kicks as he hits the ball with his tongue hanging out of his mouth.
Nearly every hit he makes is either over or under-exaggerated—there doesn't seem to be an in-between—and the showboating after scoring a point seems to make the crowd go wild. In a different video, even the announcers sound entertained by his shenanigans. If nothing else, it's clear that Monfils is having a great time on the court, delighting himself and others.
His impromptu dances are especially interesting because there's no music on the court, but that doesn't stop The Entertainer from busting a move. If you're one of those people that just isn't into tennis, he may make you want to watch a match or two.
Check out the compilation below:
@tennis.legend
The Entertainer @Gaël Monfils ! ❤ 🎥 @ATP Tour | @Tennis TV #tennis #tennislegend #tennistiktok #tennisplayer #tenis #tennistv #atptour #atp #atpworldtour #gaelmonfils #monfils #tennispro #tennismatch #tennispoint #tennisfans #tenis
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