Alex is announced as our newest regular YOB contributor, and we get right into analyzing his blogs! We start with discussing a reflection of last fall’s YOBBERS retreat written by his mom and how this unique blog even came to be on our site. We also go behind the scenes and into greater depth with his recently posted blog about holding hands with his straight guy friends: one story in which a friend reached across a restaurant table to hold his hand, and another in which Alex extended his own hand toward a friend while walking with him in the park. How did fears of PDA impact both of these hand-holdings, and what other fears or insecurities did Alex wrestle with – both in the receiving and expressing of such open same-sex physical touch?
LINKS FROM THIS EPISODE
- Alex’s 2023 retreat blog: “Renewing Hope and Forming a Liturgy for Brothers at the YOBBERS Retreat”
- Alex’s mom’s 2023 retreat blog: “Impressions of the YOBBERS Retreat from the Heart of a Mom”
- Alex’s hand-holding blog: “The Healing Power of Holding Hands with Another Man”
COMMENT ON THIS EPISODE
Have you held hands with a male friend, straight or otherwise, in a public setting? What fears and/or triumphs have you experienced in the realm of physical touch with other men?