Ricky Martin Comes Out

It's been a long time coming. It wasn't really a secret ... not for his gay brothers anyway. But José Enrique Martin Morales AKA Ricky Martin finally came out today.

Many people told me: "Ricky it's not important", "it's not worth it", "all the years you've worked and everything you've built will collapse", "many people in the world are not ready to accept your truth, your reality, your nature". Because all this advice came from people who I love dearly, I decided to move on with my life not sharing with the world my entire truth. Allowing myself to be seduced by fear and insecurity became a self-fulfilling prophecy of sabotage. Today I take full responsibility for my decisions and my actions.

What will happen from now on? It doesn't matter. I can only focus on what's happening to me in this moment. The word "happiness" takes on a new meaning for me as of today... I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man. I am very blessed to be who I am.

I'm not a big fan of his music, unless I'm two tequilas over the line in a Mexican bar, and dancing on a table. Or doing a conga line with a group of seniors from Quebec.

And then I love it eh?

But I found his statement moving, and I'm always happy to see somebody come out, because I know it's not easy. Coming out in a macho latin culture must be really hard. And he didn't just have to worry about his family and friends not loving him anymore. He had to worry about his career.

And of course if he had come out at the age of twelve like I did he would have had to deal with high school...the discrimination, the insults, the vandalism, the violence. So he probably saved himself a lot of grief. Because homophobia HURTS.

But I can't help wondering what it must be like to have waited until he was almost forty to be himself...to be free. Because I can't imagine anything worse.

Oh well... at least he didn't wait until the age of eighty- one, like the Amazing Randi

The good news? It's never too late to come out. Never too late to set a good example for gay kids. Never too late be proud and FREE.

The Amazing Randi is going to discover how magical that feeling can be.

Ricky is going to be able to dance with whoever he wants to.

And yes.... I bet you knew I was going to say this eh?

It is a crazy life.

It is a vida loca...