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Good question. I guess for me it is more miles than stones. Yes, it was a long way. I am 47 years old and in my younger days I wasn't really thinking about LGBT. Why should I?

Harassment was normal. When I went to the WC with a friend of mine - you could be sure somebody yelled "Don't forget: Tin on Tin is tingling", referring to vagina as a "tin" and indicating that we just go because we need time for lesbian Sex.

I laughed about it - until I realized that a friend was hurt. She was a lesbian. And she really was hurt by such remarks. I never laughed again about it - but I also didn't stick up to her.

Why? Well, friends have been a rarity for me. I kept the few I had and never told them off - in fear they would ditch me. My parents moved a lot, every 2 years, they moved to other places, never caring that we kids had to leave behind all friends we made to never see them again. That's an explanation - no excuse. Because I didn't realize the difference between friend and acquaintance. Friends stick up to one another. The latter don't care.

Another milestone are two friends I lost when I was very young and couldn't stop the drama unfold. Both died within a few days because of suicide. The bullied and the bully. The latter couldn't live with his guilt.

Over the years I always considered myself straight. Attracted to women? Nope, not me.

Until my first girlfriend. Just a few weeks, but it was a start. It was the start of the worst time of my life, where all my walls I built up to protect myself crumbled and left my soul bare.

It took 10 years and finally the correct diagnosis (ADHD) to get me back on track. The cancer in between didn't help a bit.

It was also in this time that I learned how circumcision of newborns and children in general (no matter if they are boys or girls) is violating the human right of bodily integrity. And if it is done out of religious reasons it also violates the right of religious freedom of the child.

I just connected the dots here. If THAT (what I considered normal at that time) was a violating of human rights, and as soon as I delved into it there was no denial anymore, then the lack of acceptance, that LGBT had the same human rights than I do, is violating civil- and human rights.

If I have the right to marry, then why don't have LGBT-people this right? If I have the right of my intact body, why are children denied this right on a regular basis?

And that was when I realized I can't be silent anymore.

As an author I try to make my characters the way I seem fit. I try to provide the stance that it doesn't matter if they are straight, gay or a rainbow poolpony. They ARE - in my mind and in my heart they are living their sweet life.

I'm not writing "gay stories" - I'm writing stories where some of the characters are gay and this is completely normal in those stories. Harassment is coming from bullies and backward idiots. Which will pay their price.

Now I have a little mantra I pull out anytime I stumble over those "it's an abomination to god"-morons. It also gives me the grounding I need sometimes:

You don't like gay marriage? Then marry straight. Other than that you have no say in the lifeplanning on strangers.

You don't like gay adoption? Then don't adopt within your gay relationship. Other than that you have no say in the matter.

You don't like gays kissing in the park? Don't look. You know, there are 360° where you can look it. If you don't like it, don't look.

You don't like gay sex? Don't have any. Other than that it is none of your business.

It is a pretty good ruling. It allows you to stick up to those who get harrassed without sticking your nose in private areas.

You can apply this on so many issues:

You don't like abortions? Then don't have any. Other than that you have no saying how others are handling their lives.

Whenever it goes to a personal decision, a decision which is only affecting the two, three or how much they ever want, persons who have to live with it, you don't get a say about it.

It is not about you to judge. And not for me either.

Support it if you are a decent human being, ignore it if you can't bring yourself to acceptance.

But the difference between a decent human being and a criminally dumb asshole is thin: Beat a gay up because you don't like it, kill a transperson because you can't wrap your head around it and citing bible verses, well:

That is making you not one bit better than any ISIS-Killer in Syria and Iraq.