I can't write the song you'd like me to. Isn't it clear? I march to the beat of my own drum!
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I watched tonight's episode of Glee and I felt proud of the show. I know I have absolutely nothing to do with the show but it made me proud as though I had.
**Disclaimer: If you haven't watched it - here is a spoiler alert**
The show was essentially about sex. I don't want to get into my thoughts surrounding the abundance of sex in the media or how we sensationalize it in a myriad of ways (I mean look at my background, for goodness' sake!). I do, however, want to say that I am in awe of the show and the many ways it tends to shed light on so many topics and in such creative ways. Anyway, tonight's episode had more to do with how kids today are without the means to effectively and intelligently navigate the world of intimacy and the consequences of that lacking knowledge. Mr. Schue solicits the assistance of substitute teacher Holly Holiday (Gwyneth Paltrow) to help educate the students in a creative way - and, of course, through song.
Anyway, though there were many, one highlight of the show was the fact that Kurt (our resident homosexual student) isn't able to deal with his ignorance on the subject. A frank heart to heart involving Blaine (Kurt's love interest) and Kurt's father leads to the dreaded (by both embarrassed parents and kids, alike) "sex talk" between a practically newly "out" Kurt and his father (who is still trying to figure out how to deal with his son's sexuality - let alone his SEXuality).
Without going into what was said (I am bordering on transcribing the script - LoL), I'll step back and say that I applaud this show for it's "activism" with regard to homosexuality. Though there have been many tough topics, that of gay kids has somehow been received well through this medium and the teachable moments are NOT shirked by any means. Let's be real, the show is a comedy and people don't want to be "taught" things when they just want to laugh but the writers do a great job of ensuring the underlying message is clear (well usually pretty clear - sometimes you can't be TOO direct if you know what I mean).
**I digress**
My reason for applauding the show stems from the way they have built upon the story of Kurt's relationship with his father. Truth: Many fathers don't want to deal with the glimmer of a possibility surrounding the shadow of potentiality regarding their son being gay. Now, most parents - as I mentioned - have difficulty discussing sex and sexuality with their children. It has to add a seemingly insurmountable challenge with the inclusion of a child who is homosexual (a subject about which MOST parents have little to no knowledge about anyway). I basically just feel the cast, crew, producers, writers, etc are doing a phenomenal job of shedding light on the umbrella of topics surrounding homosexual high school students. I won't even touch the additional delving they did into the "lesbian-adjacent" relation for Santana and Brittney.
Did you watch the show? What did you think of it? Did they go too far on some things? Did they push the envelope off the table? (is that how that saying goes?) What sort of impact did the conversation between Kurt and his father have on you?
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Coming up tomorrow:
I've begun writing my next piece and I want you to think about it so we can dialog about it. Oprah's new network, OWN, has a show that comes on Tuesdays called "Our America with Lisa Ling" where she tackles different issues in documentary/interview style. If you haven't had the chance to watch tonight's episode subtitled "Pray the Gay Away?," I would definitely ask that you take a look so we can talk about it tomorrow.
Here's a sneak peek:
