Sometimes the jobs that people decide to do are chosen because their life experiences have pushed them in a specific direction. This is the case for Emiliano, who is a therapist. He works with children and people who have experienced childhood trauma: physical, sexual and emotional. As the scene begins, he shares with us his deep connection to his nephew, the person that he believes saved his life and gave him a reason to push forward with his life. His story or abuse goes even deeper when he remembers the moment that he shared with his mother that the abuse was happening and instead of saving him she turned the other cheek. His one support was his sister. She loved him and tried to help him as much as she could but when the time came for her to leave the house, she promised him that she would always be there for him. His goal was to hold on and make it to the year that he too would be able to leave, but she made a decision. Once the abuse stopped Emiliano decided he was going to live his truth and tell his mom at age sixteen that he was gay. In a surprising turn of events, she was angrier with him in this moment than she had ever been with herself. Moments later she kicks him out of the house, and in that moment, he realized that this was his freedom moment. He no longer had to hold his deepest darkest secrets in those hidden places. He left the house and started walking. Walking away from the horror. Walking towards his freedom. He found his purpose in helping others and now he saves lives every day.
Deepest Darkest Secrets
(Emiliano stands in front of a wall in his office. He adjusts a few of his picture frames then checks his watch. He grabs one of the frames off of the wall, smiles then while looking at it speaks to the audience.)
I took this picture of my nephew Andres and I when I was sixteen, the day I left home. (Looks down at a ring on his pinky finger.) He gave me this, God it feels like a lifetime ago. (Shows audience) It’s a superhero ring he won at a fair. He gave it to me because he said that I was his superhero. I do this for him. For all the boys and girls that need a superhero to talk to. (He puts the picture back on the wall, stares at it a moment before he speaks.) I stood at the corner of my driveway, I turned around and looked back at the place that had been home all of my life. Suddenly frozen in flashes of memories that truly made me wonder if it was ever really home at all? Maybe I don’t know what home really feels like. Maybe the only thing that I know is disappointment, and hate, shame, and a lack of love. You can’t blame everything on your past. Eventually you have to live in your present whatever that looks like. So, I turn away from my home, not even realizing how damn good it would feel to have that place behind me so that I never have to look at it again. I have my backpack on, a bag full of clothes, and the ring that my three-year-old nephew gave me last the weekend. (Looks at the ring) What more do I need?