Georgia Man Noticed His Son Acting Strange. He Came Out with an Unexpected Secret: ‘You Are Failing Your Kids.’
Teenage years often come with a host of unfamiliar feelings that make people question their identity. Trystan Fossett (@itstrystanf) from Georgia couldn’t quite figure out what was going on with his son. But by fostering an environment of care and love, his son finally came forward with his secret.
Fossett told TikTok that his son gave him permission to share the experience online. “He was acting depressed and a little irritable,” he said. At first, Fossett thought it was just “teenage stuff.” It’s a phase where kids grow to have a better sense of self, but Fossett couldn’t shrug off the feeling that there was more to his son’s behavior. He knew something was bothering his son but couldn’t figure it out.
Until one day, his son approached him and his wife. Their son expressed that he wanted to talk to them after dinner.
“Our kids know that they can come to us anytime they need to talk, and we’ll talk about anything they want to talk about,” Fossett stated. He and his wife were already in bed, watching TV, when their son entered the room. He sat down, and then finally worked up the courage to tell them the truth.
“Dad, Mom, I need to tell you something. I don’t want you to freak out,” he said. It almost seemed like he was about to confess that he’d been stealing from Target. He continued, “Please don’t be mad at me.”
He came out with an anticlimactic secret
Fossett and his wife kept listening, eager to know why their son has been pulling away. Their son paused for a couple of seconds before he finally confessed.
“I’m gay,” he said.
“Okay, is that it?” Fossett initially thought that something serious happened to his son. His concern as a parent took over—he was far more worried that his son was in a situation that he couldn’t help with. It turns out his son was just struggling to tell him that he’s gay.
Fossett and his wife welcomed their son with open arms. They spent the next two hours talking to their son about his identity.
“When I tell y’all, it looked like the weight of the world got lifted off his shoulders. All the color came back to him. He was so bright,” Fossett recalled.
“Son, I’m never going to be mad at you or not love you any more than I do now just for being who you are. Unless you’re a serial killer or you like kids, that is a whole other fish to fry,” Fossett told his son. It’s not like his son came forward asking him to hide a body. Like many teens, he just found it difficult to express his thoughts and feelings.
He doesn’t love his son any less
Fossett told the rest of the family about his son. While there were mixed emotions about it, they also concluded that they wouldn’t treat their family member differently or love him less over his preferences. Fossett said that religion came into play during the talk and that he is a religious man himself.
“God loves all His children, and He don’t make mistakes. He created you how you were supposed to be. So, if you’re watching this, you are not a mistake,” Fossett said. What matters to him is that his son felt comfortable enough to tell them his secret.
“If you’re on this app and you disowned your children for the way that they’re wired,” Fossett prefaced. He explained that people experience attraction differently, and it’s not something they could help.
“Then you’re absolutely s***y, boy. You are failing your kids,” he continued. Fossett expressed how proud he is of his son and how much he loved him before proceeding to greet people with a Happy Pride Month and a Happy Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month.
Fossett acknowledged that the LGBTQ+ community still faces prejudice and danger. In an ideal world, those who are part of the community should be able to come out to their family like this NYC influencer did on Pride Month—not with fear, but with lots of laughter.
(featured images: Trystan Fossett)
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