DO UNTO OTHERS

           You’re going to burn in Hell for all eternity.

           That’s what they said to me when I came out. It was more concern than condemnation. But they were certain of my afterlife fate. Sad that I wouldn’t be able to join them in the Great Reward.

           Then they gave me the old: “Love the sinner; hate the sin.” How about you love all of me? Let your God, who supposedly died for our sins, deal with mine.

           And if one more person tells me they’re praying for me...

           Are they really? How often? Do they have a whole list of sinners they go down every week? Is it in alphabetical order, or organized by worst sinners first.

           Don’t give me that shit about the power of prayer. That’s as useless as posting about gun control on Facebook. If you want to make this world a better place, go out into your community and do it.

           That’s what I try to do with my volunteer work at the LGBTQ+ youth shelter. I’m happy just doing data entry and setting up events if it does anything to help kids who were thrown out of their homes for being what God made them. But I’m studying to become a mentor and crisis counselor so I can do more.

           Besides that, I volunteer as a walking companion for the elderly. I enjoy listening to their life stories as we stroll. I also call to check in on them a few times a week. Even the grumpiest of clients is happy to hear a friendly voice on the other end of the phone.

           Every day I do my best to smile at strangers, hold the door open for somebody and let people go before me at the supermarket or drug store line. Oh, and I occasionally pay for the person behind me at the drive-thru or Starbucks.

           At least those holy rollers taught me one thing: How NOT to treat others. If who I love sentences me to Hell, I’ll happily burn for eternity knowing I tried to bring a little kindness to this world. A kindness they never showed me.

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Tom Misuraca studied writing at Emerson College in his hometown of Boston. Over 160 of his short stories and two novels have been published. His story, Giving Up The Ghosts, was published in Constellations Journal, and nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2021. His work has recently appeared in Exquisite Death, The Southern Quill and SIAMB! Editors Picks Flavors and Futures for Paris Ass Bookfair, 2025. He is also a multi-award winning playwright with over 170 short plays and 14 full-lengths produced globally. His musical, Geeks!, was produced Off-Broadway in May 2019. He lives in Los Angeles.