From Chapter 3 of "I've Always Known"

Suddenly I heard a sound behind me; I started to turn when my father grabbed me by the throat, lifted me off the ground, and pulled me close to his face. He growled at me that if he couldn’t make a man out of me, he’d kill me. With that said, he threw me as far as he could, I smacked against a tree and withered to the ground. “Get the ‘F’ up and get that pole into the water before I stick it up your ass.” I crawled to my feet and cast the line into the water. I stood at the edge of the water waiting for God to strike me too. I knew, as never before, I knew, that I was different,