Marriage Project, Day 10

I love the idea of boys planning their weddings. Much is made of equality being the destruction of marriage. In fact, it’s a reinvigoration of a concept straight people are so tired of they’ve memorialized the reluctant groom in every medium (those cake toppers with the bride dragging the groom to the altar are just embarrassing). Meet my guest for today’s Marriage Project:

Ever since I can remember, I have wanted a family of my own.  To be married, to have children, to grow old with the person I love. When I was young, my thoughts were very conventional, a wife, 2 children, picket fence, etc. At 18, I married my high school sweetheart and 5 months later, our son was born. My ‘perfect’ life evolved to what I had always hoped for … or so it seemed. Don’t get me wrong, I loved my wife very much, but something was just not ‘perfect’ about our life. Twelve years later we divorced. The reasons don’t matter now, but this new-found freedom of mine opened my eyes. I could be me … the me I had always known.

The years have flown by and I have always wanted to get married again.  One problem with that … gay marriage just hasn’t been a reality. Sure, we have had domestic partnerships and civil unions, but marriage? No, not yet. I’m sorry, but how do you say ‘Will you civil union me?’ or ‘Hey, how about a domestic partnership?’ … no, you say ‘Will You Marry Me?’  I have wanted to say that, for as long as I can remember, to the person I love.

After a few failed relationships, I reconnected with a man I once promised to meet. We connected, we fell in love and through the hurdles we have decided to share a life together. This man, I want to marry. Last Sunday, February 12^th, I asked him to marry me. He said yes and I put a ring on his finger. We hope that by the time we actually have our ceremony that it will be legal in Washington State.

Grant
Spokane, WA