For the minister's son, Brandon, this is a summer of awakening and acceptance of his homosexuality. For his father, this is a challenge to his roots in the bible as he interprets its posture on sexuality that ultimately drives him to "save" his son by killing his lover, Logan. In a broader exploration of "acceptance", a play-within-the-film recalls two landmark tragedies in the history of gay culture: the murder of Matthew Shepard, and the suicide of Tyler Clementi. An intertwined story traces an Erie Canal cruise operator's challenges in starting a "gay" cruise in presumed conservative Upstate New York. The message, "Accept What You Can't Change," is directed to non-gay individuals who need to better understand the reality of homosexuality; and to gay individuals who need to absolve themselves from the notion that being gay is somehow wrong and shameful.