The Comprehensive Edition
RICH BATEMAN
I Was Born This Way—The Comprehensive Edition
Rich Bateman
Copyright Rich Bateman© 2012
Published by Rich Bateman Books at Smashwords
DEDICATION
First and foremost, I must dedicate this work to my wonderful parents for all the unconditional love they provided me. Next, I must mention the person that purchased this book. Your faith in my words mean more to me than anything in the world; therefore, it is YOU also to whom I dedicate this book. I want everyone who reads this book to learn and take away something, which allows them to tap into their own talent. And to Lady Gaga for Born This Way; this book was in the works since 1996 and your song finally brought my words into fruition—therefore, I not only dedicate this to you, but also to your Born This Way Foundation. I truly believe that promoting awareness of bullying is the only solution to ending it. Let’s go!.
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments
1 Introduction 12
2 Role Model Parents of Unconditional Love 15
Blue-Collar Providers
A Very Dedicated Mother-Glue to Family
Loving, Hard-Working, & Devoted Father
Mentally-Challenged Sister – Early Trust
Dinkey
3 Growing Up In A Small Southern Town 39
The Personal Touch
How To Know If One Has Class 101
Sometimes the Town Knows Your Business Before You Do
4 The Younger Years 44
Baby Extraordinaire?
Pre-Kindergarten Days and Kindergarten
Favorite Elementary School Holiday
5 Middle School Life 51
Very Typical
The Not So Typical
Life on Jefferson Street
The Health/Science Walking Lesson
6 High School 57
Ninth Grade Shock
My Most Humiliating Moment Ever
Ninth Grade Accomplishments and Compromises
Meet DHS’ Featured Twirler—Doug
Photography—How I Kept My Mind Occupied
My First Job
Physical Education Dilemma
Realizations
Enduring the Last Few Years
Class-Troublemakers=Success
The Positive/Negative Effect
Status Boost!
Graduation = Freedom
Breaking the News
7 Recognizing the Signs 91
Identifying the Child’s Strengths
8 How to Help 93
Educate Yourself
It is OKAY to Acknowledge One’s Strengths
A Robbed Education
Aunt Sadie
Without Failure, Without Success
APA (American Psychological Association) Resolutions
ACLU—American Civil Liberties Union 93
9 Successful Gay People throughout History 111
10 Conclusion 116
About the Author
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I want to give a huge thanks to Kerry Harris for kicking my butt into gear so I finally put these much needed words on paper. Kerry, we have been through a lot and I am so glad that I have had you with which to share my life—it has certainly been colorful! I also want to thank someone that helped me to dig deep enough to find myself again and that special person is Barbara Been. Had it not been for your chats with me, this book would not even have transpired. To my English teacher, Mark Tanenbaum, thank you for giving me the technique and confidence to make my words be concise and encouraging me to move forward with more material. To my Composition Skills teacher, Russ Phillips, thank you for placing such demands, I learned a lot! I want to thank my sister and family for always supporting me. A special thank you to Vada Stithem and her family for her unconditional love throughout all these years—blood does not always make one a part of the family and you are proof of that—thank you. Thanks to Margaret, for all of your love and faith in people. To Lynn Chizik for all the fun times in the “armpit of the nation,” as you so rightfully put it. If anyone feels left out, do not worry, you will be in the next book. And finally, I thank Lady Gaga for composing her song, Born This Way, for that is where I found my true inspiration to share my story.
1 introduction
I wrote this book because I believe that through my story, we can learn that for ALL children, it is detrimental for them to receive fair treatment while attending school. Straight, gay, transgendered, or bi, none of the labels matter when it comes to one’s education; and whether or not they realize their potential within. I do know this, my personal experience was a difficult one—which does make one stronger. This book is a brief observation into my life—the life of a gay boy growing up DeWitt, Arkansas. DeWitt is a very small town and most of the associations one has heard about small towns is true: gossip runs amuck, everyone knows your business, and everyone pretty much knows everyone else in town.
My home life was excellent and I had very loving parents who loved me and my sister unconditionally. I thank God every day for my parents—I am a successful person today because of my extraordinary parents. Having such great parents also made me strive to make them proud. I wanted to have a good report card to show them. I wanted to have good comments from my teachers to share with them. I was recently told by a great friend of mine, Cindy Crews, that I have always been an “achiever.” That was something which my parents instilled within me with my raising—it was just “there,” thanks to my parents and their upstanding morals and values.