Gay Is Happy

To my knowledge, the first homosexual I ever met that was openly gay was in an acting class I took when I was 22. Acting and gays have gone hand in hand for centuries, but, for us heteros, it also opened the door to have great access to women in acting. With so many gays flying around, a straight guy, like myself, felt like a kid in a candy store. But, I digress. Some of the students were either openly gay, or, you pretty much knew that they were a ''friend of Dorothy's''. At first, because of my lack of experience in dealing with that lifestyle, and, also, being a young male who constantly thought of women, I was a little put off being around them. My skin didn't exactly crawl, but, there was a noticable lack of interaction with them like I had with the straight people. And, let's not forget, when you are young, even though you think you know everything and have all the answers, you don't. I'm sure my arrogance and prejudice towards that lifestyle inflicted a certain coldness with them. In time, as I got to know them, I accepted whom they were and, while I still don't understand that lifestyle at all, I sure have embraced everybody's right to live their lives how they want to. I would never tell anyone whom they should be with......... As I've grown older and hopefully wiser, I have relaxed my personal biases. That is one of the great things about growing older [ there aren't many great things]: the ability to have an open mind. Not that you have to necessary agree with another viewpoint or lifestyle. There are still certain things that I will never embrace. But, the key of maturity in a person is the open mind. I will debate with the best and the dumbest. I will listen to their side, which can be both informative, and a complete waste of my fucking time. I will gather information to store in my memory bank, or, I will flush away comments as fast as I can. Unfortuantely, some dumb things still stick to my mind while other important details fade away. I used to know about the Theory Of Relativity. It is actually an easy formula. Not anymore. But, I remember Sonny and Cher were married to each other. Why I remember that and not phone numbers of people I love is a strange twilight zone world to live in. However, it all flows with the open mind to all information. And, life's experiences, as we all know, change us. What you may have believed at 22 may not apply at 47. Am I the same person now that I was at 22? I hope not. Because that would mean my learning has been stunted and I have not accepted all of the differences in life. And, homsexuality, once so alien and uncomforatble to me, has grown in my acceptance.......... I still do not have anyone close to me who is gay. My family and friends have all followed the straight way of living, as have I. I have had some girlfriends who had gay friends that I got to know. But, no one close to me, or, someone I have known for a long time, has ever come out of the closet. How would I react if such and such a person told me that they were homosexual or lesbian? At first, it would be a source of humor, as most things are with me. There would be the jokes and the inappropriate comments that only the people you love can appreciate. Then, well, I would think the serious analysis would come into the forefront. I would ask the person if they feel better and more happy coming out of the closet. I would hope that the answer would be affirmative. I would be looking at their face and hopefully to see joy and relief in finally being whom they always wanted to be but couldn't. There has to be a horrible feeling that you have been made to feel a freak by society and its bigotry simply because you have decided to travel a different way with your sexuality. Then, if they felt so free to talk about it, I would listen to their stories, not the sexual ones, but, the sad stories of hiding their lives under a lie. I would listen to their stories of ridicule and shame and condemnation by society and by their loved ones who shunned them. We have all heard the stories about fathers disowning sons because of their sexual orientation. We have heard the stories about ridicule from a person's peers that result in suicide attempts. And, as I would listen to these heartbreaking stories, I would, I believe, open up a part of my soul that would be protective of my new gay friend. I would see the light even clearer and with better perspective. Although I do not agree with their sexual practices, that is okay. They do not agree with mine either. But, they don't judge me or shun me because I am heterosexual. Why, therefore, should I judge them? The evening would probably end with us embracing and us closer than we have ever been. And, then, my friend would still be my friend, like  for so many years, and, we would share laughs and good times again. Would I look at them differently? Yeah, I would. But, it would be from an angle of pride and respect for putting up with all the abuses they have endured for years.......... There are some mistakes I think homsexuals do make. Some use their sexual life as a cause. I'm old-fashioned. Regardless of how one swings, I believe in privacy. It is no one's business whom you sleep with. Free will always triumphs in my book. But, the homosexual community is mistaken, I believe, to turn a personal issue into a political cause. Example: the Gay Pride Parade every year in most major cities. If I was gay I would be highly ashamed and alarmed by this parade. It is billed as a celebration of a lifestyle but it is actually a mockery of good intentions. Check out the floats and the behavior of many of the participants. They are acting so stereotypical and outrageous that they seem to turn off many straights with their antics and buffoonery. If I was gay I would be highly ashamed of the parade and would believe it sets the movement back. When you open something up to such ridicule you will invite the backlash. In short, if you act like an idiot, then, the world will treat you like an idiot. This cannot please most homosexuals. They must sit at home and shake their heads in disgust. Here they have been living their lives trying to have ''normal'' society accept them as ''normal'' people, and, then, these fools open up the old wound of ridicule. Take a cue from the heterosexual world. We have no parade. Most straight people use discretion. If gays believe that no one should be interested in what is happening in the privacy of a bedroom, then, they should start practicing what they preach. Yes, the issue must be addressed to a certain degree, but, do it in a classy and respectful way. That is how straight society will understand and accept. But, you are not getting the message out on ''Dykes On Bikes''............ The gay marriage movement has had another success, this time with the State Of Illinois passing the bill for gays to get married. I have never had a problem with this. My standard joke has always been that if gays want to be miserable in marriage like most heteros I know let them do it. I know many people who follow the Bible and the teachings of this most arguable book have issues with the gay marriage movement. They argue that marriage is between a man and a woman. I have always that marriage is for two people who love each other, regardless of background, religion, race, or sex. If a union is involved with two people who love each other deeply, who cherish the other person for making their life come alive and for stimulating them intellectually and physically, for being the other half of their soul and being the partner they want to walk through life with, then, if you want some legal document to have to make it official, then that is my definition of marriage............ So, for the bigots out there that see gays and lesbians as the big corrupters of youth, who see the fact that two people of a same sex are the devil, relax, no one is gonna threaten you and your life. You can still proudly wave the banner of your preference as high as you want. But, really, no one cares like you think they do. And, who knows? There is the old theory about protesting too much about something. Maybe, just maybe, somewhere in the deepest, darkest regions of your narrow mind, there is a little interest in this lifestyle. There are also the stories about ''macho'' men who spend their whole lives proving their masculinity, and then, they end up sucking dick from a Mormon in a Utah hotel room....... In the final analysis, who really cares? I don't. Neither should you. Let people live their lives the way they want to, as long as no one is hurt or taken advantage of. There is far too much hatred floating around this world already. None should be leveled at two people who are spreading the feeling human love........