"Reflections On Married Life... Valentine's Day"

Dear Readers,

Today was a lovely day... My husband Ed and I began our day early with him off running errands and me going into work for a few hours.  But at lunch time, Ed picked me up and we went to see my old boss and friend Mark.   We took my friend Mark out to lunch and Ed was really good about letting Mark and I dither on about our work while he patiently listened.

After lunch, the husband and I decided to go walk the mall. We had a nice time browsing the stores and window shopping.  We even bought some glassware at Crate & Barrel before we stopped for a snack (frozen yogurt for me and a pomegranate smoothie for Ed) and just relaxed and talked about things going on as we people watched from the food hall at Macy's.

When we got home this afternoon, we opened the gifts we'd exchanged before leaving this morning.  I got the husband a box of candy, the expected card filled with sweet sentiment and a cute pair of Valentine's boxer shorts (we'll see if he wears them to bed tonight ;-).  He bought me a box of my favorite type of chocolate (cherry cordials) and two cards (one giant card that's quite comical, and a regular sized one that says what I believe he really feels.  Needless to say, I think we were both happy to have love in our lives and to have a special occasion to celebrate it.

After the gifts, while I worked on some projects for work, Ed went to visit his niece and her children... his great nephew's birthday is today.  Then when he got back this evening we went out to dinner.  Now that we're home, I'm rather tired and looking forward to a good night's rest.  Tomorrow will be a busy day at work, but before going to bed, I had to reflect on how much better life has become... Thinking back, there were many many lonely years in my life when "Valentine's Day" was just a reminder of how alone I was.  For most of my life, this day was little more than a reminder of how miserable I thought life would always be.

But now, like so many of us, I too can say, "It gets better."  I am out to my family and friends, my colleagues and coworkers and I am accepted as I am... a same-gender-loving man who's nothing more or less than human... This Valentine's Day, I am thankful for my husband and our love for one another.  And I can say, "Its good and it matters when you're married."

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"Fear Eats the Soul"