4th Anniversary for Greenlee Gazette Editor's Big Gay Marriage!

The only time I ever use the term "gay marriage" is in internet discussions, because that is the colloquial term most used. "Same-sex marriage" is a little more descriptive, but still cumbersome. "Marriage equality" is now the preferred term by supporters. The decidedly odd opposition (I mean really, who dedicates their life to trying to stop other peoples' weddings, outside of a soap opera?) has more colorful, but usually badly descriptive terms. I just call mine a marriage.

But I'd be lying if I said that my fourth marriage anniversary with The Other Half is a huge event. We've been together for 14-1/2 years. We got married in Palm Springs just a few weeks short of 10-1/2 years together. So "four" sounds kind of silly. And there was no pomp nor circumstance at our wedding. Just a couple of friends, and later, dinner at a Mexican restaurant with them. The date was chosen because we were nearly certain that Prop. 8 was going to pass, and make the possibility disappear, at least in a nearby state. We already felt "married," but on June 27, we made it official.  And, of course, the busybodies (armed with bucketloads of cash from the Mormon and Catholic churches) managed to convince enough Californians to squash marriage equality in the state.

Our marriage is still valid in the states where same-sex marriage is still legal. In some of the states that have legalized it, the busybodies are at work again, trying to reverse it. Why, I have no idea. This is no longer a hypothetical concept. We're real, married couples. And the sky didn't fall. "God" didn't swallow up those states. And to what end? Even if my marriage did get nullified by voters (and in America, can you imagine that concept?), are we going to split up? No. Are we going to stop being gay? No. Stop loving each other? No.

I started this post with the intention of merely commenting on my anniversary, and saying "I love you honey" to The Other Half. But posts on this blog are read by many who never comment, never tell me they were here. This is an important issue, and I think it needs to be reiterated again and again. If you take nothing else from this post, remember this: Gay people aren't looking for "holy matrimony." If we wanted a church wedding, there are already denominations who will accommodate that. We're looking for nothing more than civil marriage equality. Civil marriages only include religion if you want them to. Unless you're going to try and stop atheist and interfaith marriages.