God is Love

Brace yourself. I'm gonna get rill for a sec. I mean, I'm always rill, but this is real rill. Get ready.

Oh. And I apologize if this doesn't make any sense at all, because that is entirely possible. Remember last post, when I said I'm going to post what I think? Well, my thoughts aren't always organized and orderly. So live with it. I do.

All I know is how I feel.

That's not entirely true for everything, but it is true about my stance on certain things.

About a month ago, Emily and I participated in a group called Mormons Building Bridges and walked in the Salt Lake City Pride Parade. I had never been to anything at Pride before and to be completely honest I was pretty nervous when we first decided to participate. Even though I was nervous, I wanted to do this. I felt really good about it.

A couple of nights before the parade, I decided to make our poster. I chose to use John 4:8, "God is love." The letters would be in the colors of the rainbow. Of course. When I told Emily about this idea for the poster, we both got this incredible and positive feeling. This was happening. We were going to march in a Pride Parade, in our church clothes, holding a rainbow poster that said, "God is love." We were saying that we believe that God is love. We were saying, "We love you."

Let me tell you, it felt so so so so good. Walking in the parade brought on so many unexpected emotions. I cried almost the entire time as I held Emily's hand with one of mine and our poster in the other; Emily was waving a small rainbow flag in her other hand. The crowds watching the parade were so nice and so receptive as they applauded, cheered, smiled, and cried with us. It was truly a beautiful experience and I am SO glad that I was able to do it, and that I did.

                                                          I am proud of it.

God loves all. And He loves unconditionally. I believe that with all of my heart. Religion aside, church aside, whatever belief you have or don't have aside, His love can reach anyone and everyone who is wanting and willing to experience it. That's what religion means to me: doing what you believe will allow you to experience God's love; this complete, unquestionable, unrestricted, unconditional love. And there are so many ways you can experience it/feel it/see it. For me, the main way I experience it is my wife. Her love for me is so perfect and so delicious and so lovely that I can't even imagine living without it, and my love for her is so inexplicably strong, and the fact that I have her makes me so grateful, and that gratitude makes me so happy. It is SOOOOO good. That is what this love is to me. Other ways I feel it are: my family, my religious worship, my friends, my involvement in theater. Those are just a few things, for me. And they are the things I choose because they are the things I like. And even though every human is different, even though everyone believes different things, everyone can experience this love. Or not. Whatever! That's cool, too. Because really, it is cool, too. I think it is anyway.

Everyone is different. But different does not mean less. Different does not mean unequal. All humans, though different, are equal in God's eyes. Ladies and gentlemen, and I right? I think that it I am. So, that being said, to me, that means that a right allowed to one person should not be withheld from another.

You guessed it, I'm talking about marriage equality.

 I know that there are so many arguments out there but I don't want to argue. I haven't argued about it, actually. Not ever. With anyone. I have discussed this topic with people, so if you think discussing is the same as arguing, then I guess I have argued. But I don't think I have. Because I don't care to argue. I do want to discuss, I do want to listen and to talk and be heard and to learn.

Different is not less, right?

Equality means equal. I think that everyone, equally, should be allowed to marry whomever they want. And for right now, that's all I care to say. But I do care to say it. I really do care.