hugging Archives • Your Other Brothers

6 April 20226 April 2022

I still have that Link costume somewhere in my closet. Perhaps it's the wandering through the woods that I love, the isolation, the music; or, perhaps it's something deeper that has stuck with me after all these years. Perhaps it's that I feel like the protagonist: adrift in time, unsure whether I'm a child or a man. This is how I feel as I move back into my childhood bedroom – the place where my sexual trauma

by Christopher

6 Comment(s)

29 September 202129 September 2021

Why Go on a Gay Men’s Christian Retreat?

While I do not want to ignore the subject of temptation and what to do with it, I think it would be more relevant to talk about the positives of this weekend retreat spent with my brothers in Christ. A better question to ask and answer about our YOBBERS retreat would be: "Why do you gather together?" And also the question: "What is the fruit of such a gathering?" Perhaps by looking at something more culturally familiar, we can draw a parallel to our experience as gay/SSA "Side B"

by Ben Rutkowski

28 Comment(s)

24 September 202124 September 2021

Sick of Gay Men No Longer?

Frankly, all this relational turmoil boiled to the point that I thought: You know what? I'm sick of gay men. Tired of the super sensitive personalities, tired of the drama queens. Heck, the emotionless or stoic personalities of most straight men started to feel preferable to what I'd found lately with other gay/SSA men. Nonetheless, with our YOBBERS retreat coming up I needed to put aside my negativity as best I

by Eugene Heffron

13 Comment(s)

28 April 202111 June 2021

The First Guy I Ever Crossed Physical Boundaries With

I pictured him crying in his bed when he woke up that morning, or even going to bed crying right after leaving me; knowing I'd hurt him, knowing I'd been the one to cross physical boundaries. It destroyed me, if I'm

by Thomas Mark Zuniga

12 Comment(s)

6 April 20216 April 2021

When I Get Lost in My Loneliness

Well, 2020 happened. And in this "unprecedented" year, a more personal disease revealed itself in me. Like Nouwen wrote, despite my being around people during a pandemic, I faced loneliness. My tendency to isolate combined with an actual, physical inability to connect with others made me look deeper into the why of my

by Kevin Zimmerman

11 Comment(s)

1 July 202013 February 2021

Longing for Intimacy with Straight Guy Friends

I just have a longing to be accepted, seen as a man among men. To feel like one of the guys. Yes, I've experienced those feelings with fellow "Side B" friends, but sometimes it only feels like one side of the

by Eugene Heffron

32 Comment(s)

6 May 202028 January 2021

This Secret Longing to be Held by a Stronger Man

I yearn to be held by a bigger, stronger man, to rest in his powerful arms, to lay my head on his chest. I ache for this; I dwell on this desire a lot. I suppose, given the nature of this website, my admission surprises approximately nobody. But it's hard to

by Ryan Burger

29 Comment(s)

22 April 202028 January 2021

Isolation Amid Covid-19 and Hope for the Future

The Covid-19 pandemic has become something of an "isolation equalizer." People everywhere are living in tension and isolation with businesses closed, services restricted, and life as we've known it ground to a halt. We are, all of us, isolated. And yet there is tremendous opportunity to unite in our shared

by Ben Rutkowski

5 Comment(s)

31 March 202025 June 2021

YOB ConvoCast 002: Tom & Marshall Go to Seattle!

Tom welcomes back OG YOB author, Marshall, for a catchup on his life these last few months living on a farm with over a dozen people. They also chit-chat about Seattle and the splendor of Mt. Rainier, as well as the importance of community, now more than ever, during this coronavirus

by YOB