I just recently watched this on Netflix and was blown away by this beautiful story. Pat Henschel and Terry Donahue spent 72 years together not telling anyone, including family, that they were gay. To see the love that these two women had for each other was truly inspiring. I never really thought about the struggles they would have had to endure during the 1940’s until now trying to keep their relationship hidden. The film really shows what it was like to be gay during a time when it was not as accepted by society as it is now. All love is meant to be cherished and is so special when you find that one person who reaches into your soul. This film was so uplifting, funny and heartwarming.

The amount of loss that Pat suffered in her life was extremely heartbreaking. I don’t know how she made it through enduring so much heart ache and I was so happy to see that she had Terry to love her and provide that connection that so few people in this world find. Terry seems like such a bright and loving light and Pat appears to want to protect Terry from anything that may diminish that light. The story they tell about their lives is so fascinating. Terry was part of of the All American Girls Professional Baseball League and played professionally for four years during World War II. To see the pictures and film of their lives over the years was so amazing and to see the pictures of the baseball teams was interesting. If you have never seen the movie A League of Their Own I would recommend watching it.

They show some very disturbing history about how gay people were treated in A Secret Love. If any bar was suspected of being a gay bar it would be raided and they would print the names and occupations of all the people they arrested in the paper which would lead to job losses, excommunication from family and would eventually lead to some suicides. Terry was terrified to tell anyone in her family she was gay because she was fearful of losing them. I could not imagine what that would feel like. The family was always told that rent was too expensive and that they lived together to share bills. It really breaks my heart that they felt like they had to live in hiding just because they were gay.

I will recommend this documentary to everyone. It was just wonderful to see such a beautiful love story. Check it out on Netflix!