I was born in Brooklyn, New York...Now, I can get married to my partner in Brooklyn, NY

I never thought I'd say or write these words:

I was born in Brooklyn, NY.

I am a native New Yorker.

Today, I can get married in New York, wherever.

I am proud to claim my New York roots.

Mazel Tov!

Brett

Frank Bruni is Right

Sweet op-ed in the NYT by Frank Bruni about equal marriage being passed in NY. He understands taht the more we tell our story, the better it is for all:

Over the last quarter-century the love that dared not speak its name turned into a veritable motor mouth, to a point where the average American, according to an astonishing Gallup Poll last month, thinks that about 25 percent of the population is homosexual. Hardly. But that perception underscores how visible gay people have become. And familiarity changes everything.

Pace!

B

p.s., thanks New Yorkers! What a special state to call home!

An Amazing Fathers' Day

This morning on CBS Sunday Morning they had a cute Fathers' Day "postcard" with two gay dads and their cherubic child.

Cute!

Those were the days!

Now I have two grown adult children, and things are quite different. And a nice testimony to the difference was the gift of presence today: Dean and I showed up unexpectedly at the Weathervane restaurant in Chapel Hill, not telling Parker (son) that we were there. He was gracious and kind when he realized we were there...to the point of paying for our meals and providing a cheese plate and dessert...holy kaboly!

Tonight, daughter Adrianne is going with us to hear some good old blues and folk music at a picnic with us. We'll help provide the food.

A marvelous day to be a dad and partner.

Pace!

B

Archbishop Dolan Vs. The World of Change

God is doing something new...as is the Spirit's will

Sadly, the Archbishop of NY doesn't quite get what is going on in this world, nor does the hierarchy of the Church. Or, they get it, but wish to deny the reality of what is going on in this world. A maturation of this day and age in accepting the presence of LGBTQ people.

There was this telling quote by Maureen Dowd in her NYT.com essay on this issue of gays in the Church:

The church refuses to acknowledge the hypocrisy at its heart: that it became a haven for gay priests even though it declares homosexual sex a sin, and even though it lobbies to stop gays from marrying.

And:

In the same blog, Dolan snidely dismissed the notion that gay marriage is a civil right. “We acknowledge that not every desire, urge, want, or chic cause is automatically a ‘right,’ ” he wrote.

“And, what about other rights, like that of a child to be raised in a family with a mom and a dad?”

And how about the right of a child not to be molested by the parish priest?

Dolan acts like getting married (when done by gays) is a self-indulgent act of hedonism when it’s really a leap of faith and a promise of fidelity.

Click here for more: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/19/opinion/19dowd.html?ref=opinion

Archbishop Dolan need to understand that just as straight people are "hard wired" by God to be straight (natural law, anyone?), so God has "hard wired" others to be LGBTQ...or a combination thereof.

BTW: I noticed that there were a healthy number of gay couples posting their marriage announcement in the nyt this Sunday.

To quote Bob Dylan, "Times they are a' changin'"

So is the world.

God (thankfully) is the one doing the changing.

Pace!

B

Weird Confluence: Marriage, Manners, and Unions

So: In Illinois, you can now have a "civil union." Soon, in NY state, we can be married (hopefully it'll all pass this weekend). That makes NY state #6 for equal rights in marriage. And NY is the third largest state in the Union. NJ is also talking about it.

My friend Steven Petrow talked about his book on manners and LGBTQ issues yesterday. Such marriages and unions necessitate such a book.

Weird, but good.

B

Back in Chapel Hill

I've been on a pilgrimage of sorts, discovering my place in the sandwich generation. I took care of my mom for the last 12 days, assisting her as she gained strength after her recent operation (open heart surgery) and witnessing my son's graduation from Carrboro High School.

Ain't life grand?

B

Being a Gay Son

My mom is at Good Samaritan Hospital in Portland, OR, having come through heart valve surgery with great ease! Not bad for, well, a woman never shares her age (or so we say).

I am in full "son" mode, helping out where I can.

We welcome all kinds of prayers, good thoughts, warm wishes, happy vibes.

Fun being the gay son than the gay dad for awhile.

B