Non-Comedy, Personal Update: my uncle died last week. 10 years ago he called me a homo, and our relationship has been strained ever since. At the time I told him I expect hatred from the outside world, but I won’t stand for it in my own family, and he apologized...

But I’ve been interested by how the burden was really on me to forgive. I was able to visit with him over the past few weeks and be with him and my family while he was dying from terminal cancer. By time he passed I’d forgiven him, as much as his comment hurt me. I had to explain

my pain to him to warrant an apology, and to his credit, he listened to me and heard me. My Uncle Dave was basically a frat bro, an all-star famed hometown athlete, a mentor, husband to my favorite aunt, father of my cousins, and grandfather to 3 individual and hysterical beings.

It hurts so much to see my aunt and cousins grieving this loss. He was 62. In the end, I am grateful he and I were able to get thru to a place of love, and I got to thank him for bringing some of my favorite humans onto this earth and into my life. Life is a one-time ride.

Losing uncle Dave isn’t something I could have done 10 years ago. I am thankful for all the time we got with him, for the love of gardening he shared with me, for birdwatching, and for Tito’s and that filthy and disgusting laugh that sounded like cigarettes choking on cigarettes.

Rest In Peace, Uncle Dave. (also there were some super hot guys at your funeral when I wasn’t crying)