I agree with BO this one time...

Anyone who knows me knows I am NOT a fan of our current President.  But in the interests of historical accuracy, I must say that I am happy he has come out in favor of gay marriage.  I actually AGREE with him on this issue.

I know not all of you will agree with me or BO, and I'm not posting this to spark any discussion or controversy, but I've thought long and hard about this issue and thought I might just put my thoughts into words here on my blog.

Sometimes I wonder how much my opinions are influenced by the metropolitan area in which I live, what I'm exposed to each and every day.  Certainly living in the NYC area, even though I was raised in and still live in a suburban neighborhood, certainly that must make me a bit more aware, perhaps, of different lifestyles, different people, different traditions. 

But I was raised in a conservative, faith-filled home, a home filled with love and respect.  It's what I grew up wanting for my own:  a husband, children, a family.  My parents were old-fashioned and traditional.  My mom still is.  I wish my dad were still alive so I could talk with him about all of these issues.  I have a funny feeling he would be much more open-minded than many might expect.  I had a very traditional upbringing in many ways, and in others, my parents were way ahead of their time:  for instance, it was never even an option that we would not go to college.  We were raised to respect our elders.  (Any since we're being honest here, I am now officially one of those elders I had to respect when I was a kid!)

What I wish for each and every one of my children, my nieces and nephews, my friends and their children, is that they find a person they love, who loves them right back at the same time, who makes them happy, who values their love.  I hope they find their own version of MY husband.  And if that person happens to be of the same sex, so what?  I want my children, my family, my friends, to be HAPPY. 

I don't understand why anyone thinks they have the right to prevent someone from finding that love.  It's rare in this world, and if you find it, grab it with both arms and hold on tight.  It's so worth it. 

We fought long and hard in this country to eliminate slavery, to give women the right to vote.  It's been and will continue to be a long hard road to reach that point when gay marriage is, in general, okay with the rest of the world.  I'm hoping that day comes sooner rather than later.

Separation of church and state?  Did I imagine those words?  Sure, that means that despite what the "law" says, the church doesn't have to agree (and the reverse is true as well).  We see plenty of those issues floating around (are any of you Roman Catholics on birth control?).  Why then can I not get married in my church without a marriage license from my city government?  My sister got married by the mayor.  She was no less married than I am, except in the eyes of her church.  Then why did I need a marriage license?  Marriage?  Civil union?  To me, they are one and the same.  There are a lot of people who aren't strong and faithful believers.  But they get married, they buy that marriage license and perhaps a mayor performs the ceremony, or a justice of the peace.  There are many faithful getting married, and instead of just getting married one weekend by their priest or minister, they have to take a day off from work and apply for a marriage licence.  I know I'm ranting about this, but this just makes no sense to me.  Why is my sister's marriage a marriage, MY marriage is a marriage, but if her husband had been a woman, that would not be "allowed" by some people our there.  It would not be a marriage.

Oh yeah???  It would be civil.  It would be a union.  It would be a marriage. 

I don't believe we can define marriage as only between a man and a woman.  I just can't wrap my head around that.  And I don't have some earth-shattering sentence with which to wrap up this post, so...

I will vote to "allow" gay marriage, on any state or federal ballot.  I can't be responsible for yanking that chance for happiness out of the grasp of anyone.