Role reversal and a great film

Strange role reversal today. I was on the phone to my dad while he was in hospital after a hernia operation. As I was speaking to him he was woozy from general anaesthetic, and also tramadol (a strong painkiller), and was on a drip. He's doing absolutely fine, and will be back home tomorrow, but what was actually great was that he said that after seeing me have it so many times he'd been a bit worried about getting the cannula (tube) put in his arm, but actually it wasn't so bad.

It's good, I think, to realise that hospital is really not so bad. If you're in there then you're usually better off, or you shortly will be. Nice to be able to give Dad some sympathy, and to be able to be worried about him. A strange kind of relief.

Apart from a lot of stress about renewing my tenancy contract on the flat I share, today has been remarkable for another reason - I just saw a stunning film. It is called Milk, and stars Sean Penn. It's a beautifully simple, well-acted, well-directed and gimmick-free look at the gay rights movement in San Francisco in the 1970s and particularly the life of the first openly gay public official in the USA and the fight against hatred and bigoted attempts at legislating.

I was just blown away by it, and suddenly understood so much more about why coming out as a gay man isn't just something you do for yourself, but also something that you do for every other person struggling with themselves and how society views them. My favourite quotes: "We will not win our rights by staying quietly in our closets ... We are coming out to fight the lies, the myths, the distortions. We are coming out to tell the truths about gays, for I am tired of the conspiracy of silence, so I'm going to talk about it. And I want you to talk about it. You must come out. Come out to your parents, your relatives." and also "it is harder for them to vote against us if they even know just one of us".

I can't remember the last time that a film affected me so much. I guess I've always viewed gay activism as a bit of joke, something I was a little embarassed by, and I've joined in with dodgy gay stereotyping and jokes. I think I need to stop apologising, though don't worry, I don't intend to go around with a big "I AM GAY" placard.

... though I do love this advert by Stonewall: