Wayne Orr

The Awakening: the Gay Preacher Wayne Orr

"Going somewhere, queer boy?"... He tried to continue on his way, but the man with the baseball cap stepped forward and swung his fist. Darryl tried to block the blow but was too slow. The punch caught him in the belly making him double up. Darryl Scott is a young software salesman who lives in Austin, Texas. He dates a few women from time to time but does not enjoy it very much. Although he has homosexual encounters occasionally, he does not consider himself to be gay. His father, a fire-and-brimstone preacher, dies and leaves Darryl his church. Darryl becomes "born again" and decides to carry on his father's mission of saving souls. He marries a beautiful woman named Diana Houston hoping that she will help him rid himself of his homosexual urges. He eventually realizes that all the praying in the world, all the salvation in the world, and all the beautiful women in the world will not "cure" him. He is mugged by some hoodlums while leaving a gay movie theater. He is so badly shaken by this incident that he confesses to Diana that he is gay. He becomes so depressed that he attempts suicide, divorces Diana, and embraces an exaggerated gay lifestyle. Finally, he realizes that he must accept and face up to his true nature. He must stop blaming his sexual orientation for his shortcomings and rejoin the world. The characters and the situations they face are believable and real. In a story that deals with religion or homosexuality it is very easy to rely on cheap jokes and overused clichés to keep the story moving. The Awakening does not take that approach. It is sympathetic without being overly sentimental and realistic without being judgmental.