Actually I’m running for re-election to the Board of
Commissioners, Warrenville Park District. I was appointed to serve the
remaining year of an unexpired term, then ran for the position outright and won
a four year term. Five years has gone by quickly. I am now the Vice President
of the board and enjoying the work. So I have chosen to run for re-election.
Now you say, “So what?” Well here is some of my baggage:
-I am a
recovering alcoholic; nearly 7 years sober; doing quite well thank you!
-I am a
converted smoker; been smoke-free over 7 years; again, doing quite well!
-I write
this blog, a journal really of my life, warts and all for all to see
-I write a
bi-weekly column in the local newspaper and am the beat reporter for
City
Hall
-I am openly gay in a very
conservative county
of Illinois
for
nearly 13 years
In short I’m on full display for all to see and object to.
Although they rarely say anything I hear or read, I do learn of the negative
comments, usually through back channels at the paper. Trouble is it is not
about smoking, alcohol, blogger or newspaper. It is solely about being gay.
That’s what I wish to write about today. I don’t know who
authored this quote, but Rocky found it on the internet the other day:
“The secrets to a long lasting
relationship: two people working, standing, wanting, being together and seeing
the future together.”
Oh so very true! Especially seeing the future together. That
is the profound secret that holds everything else together. Two different
people learning to live together despite differentness and oddities! And
finding common ground that anchors both souls together. Most marriages strive
for this; but do they succeed in finding it? For those marriages or
relationships that last, I think they do. Those relationships which fail did
not find the elusive element.
Nicholas Sparks of The
Notebook, shares this thought with us:
“I am nothing special, of this I
am sure. I am common man with common thoughts and I’ve led a common life. There
are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten, but I’ve
loved another with all my heart and soul, and to me, this has always been
enough.”
Pretty powerful statement. Humble. Reaches deep inside of
the self. Exposes raw human quality. The individual making the statement for
him or herself is announcing the freedom to be a natural person. In a
relationship that matters. That completes him.
There are those who pick at differences as though they define
the person. You and I know they do not succeed. Jimmy Carter even places it in
religious context:
“Jesus never said a word about
homosexuality. In all of his teachings about multiple things – he never said
that gay people should be condemned.”
As I read and study theologians dissecting the history and
etymology of languages found in the original texts of the Bible, I have learned
the Bible does not mean what a lot of politicians and big-church pastors claim.
Those are false prophet people. Take this citation:
“Think Sodom
“Now this was the sin of your
sister Sodom
Like much of the Bible the text is about love and peace. It
is about forgiveness not judgment. Romans and Leviticus are about hospitality.
About looking out for the well-being of others. The Bible is not to be taken
literally. It is too complex for that. And much of the delicate meanings are
lost in eons of cultural change which alters language and symbols.
In the words of the great philosopher George Carlin(!):
“If you take the Bible literally
and Mary is the mother of Jesus and Jesus is the lamb of God, does that mean
Mary had a little lamb?”
Humorous, yes. But profound as well.
I’m hoping the good voters of Warrenville , Illinois
March 12, 2013
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