It's All Me =)

• “Be the change you want to see in the world.” ~Gandhi

I have chosen to live by those words in a sense. A lot of change has come my way recently, and a lot more is to come, that is certain. While I know there will be difficulties and hardships in the future, I believe that the move I am making this week is one that will change my future for the better. I believe, that even though leaving the friends and family that I love is difficult, this is an opportunity to experience new adventures, walk new paths, and create a fresh and new beginning for myself and those that will be around me. I hope and pray for the best and I know that someday, in some way, this will all be for the best.

*Photo taken along Emerald Isle outside Atlantic City, North Carolina by Coty Thomas.

I am totally stealing this photo my best friend Heather took. This is a photo of a guy I just met, his name is Justin. The past few days have been insane… because of him. Lets start from the beginning…

For Christmas this year, my younger brother, mother and I decided to purchase dad a GPS. We wanted to go out of state to Kentucky to visit our family, so we bought it and I entered their address as a surprise. That aside, mom nd I decided to meet up at lunch time last Thursday and purchase the GPS and a card for him. I arived before she did so i decided to go ahead andget everything together since we were limited on time through work.
I went to where they keep the GPS systems on the shelf, and to my dismay… after printign out the paper from online that stated the store was in stock of the GPS’… I could not find any. Justin came over and asked if I needed assistance. I looked at him, and completely forgot where I was, what I was doing, and how to speak. He looked at my paper and said “oh, are you looking for this GPS? You’re in the wrong area” and he led me to where they were.
Trying as I might to do first impression damage control, I managed to let out this stupid sounding nervous laugh and said “thank you.” I then, for whatever reason, went on to tell him why I was needing to buy it. Can you say embarrassing? Sigh. It felt like the temperature in the store went through the roof. And… wait a minute… he was smiling at me. Not a fake “oh please, do shut up” kind of smile. A genuine, one of a kind smile. 
I felt like I was turning into butter. I know I was blushing and I was terrified he would see it.
I asked if he could hold the GPS for me till my mom arrived to pay for it, and he agreed. I walked around the store, likely looking like a desperate man in need of some sanity. I went to the cards isle and foundone just right for the gift and for dad. It is at that time that mom called and told me where she was in the store. We walked back together and stood at the counter. The store was packed. People were everywhere… I felt bad for anyone having to work there over this time.
I was standing there, chatting with mom as I scanned the area for a sales associate who could ring us up. Whom did I find… who happened to be looking right at me? Yeah. My face went red and I know it. He smiled, asked the lady he was assisting if she would mind waiting a moment while he rang us up. I was beginning to talk faster and could not look him in the face with my mother standing right next to me. I was so nervous it was sad. He rang us up, and politely told us to have a great day… all the while smiling that beautiful smile. 
I, being the creeper that I am, stalked him on Facebook… only to find that we were already friends somehow. I was thinking to myself… “I wonder if I should say hello? Would that be completely insane? Will he think I am some creep? Oh gosh…” So what do I do? I message him. Told him I probably seem like a creep but I thought he was very nice and I would like to get to know him more.
As things have turned out, we have been texting… a lot. He is a great guy and I had the courage to ask him out. So who has a date Thursday evening? This guy. I am excited and will keep you all posted! 

A recently launched campaign by the Unitarian Universalist Association, called Standing on the Side of Love, brought tears to my eyes this weekend.

I, like a lot of people, am an infrequent churchgoer.  In the effort to collect hand-written letters from constituents to their elected officials in order to passmarriage equality I attended the Unitarian Universalist Church in Hagerstown on Sunday. 

The Unitarian Unitarian Association recently launched “Standing on the Side of Love,” a multi-issue campaign that could be used for many issues, including, first and foremost, winning marriage equality.

I drove 75 miles in the pouring rain to reach this quaint house of worship near the  border of Pennsylvania, not far from the Cumberland Gap and Antietam National Park.

While the churchgoers were eager to pen letters to their own member of the House of Delegates, I felt that renewed spirit of love for all, and commitment to social justice that make up the tenets of this faith.

Sure, I’ll remember with joy, the caring faces and sweet singing voices of these Maryland congregants, but I was moved to tears when I read their hand-written letters from their hearts urging their House member to support the freedom to marry for all Marylanders.

How can an elected official not be moved by reading this from a middle-aged mother and constituent: “When I was 16 years-old, my best friend went into his back yard and shot himself in the head.  Why?  Because he was afraid to grow up gay in America.”

There is so much at stake in this week’s upcoming vote on marriage equality in the Maryland House of Delegates.  Not only the right to marry the one you love, but, sadly for many, life itself.

Note: National Field Director Marty Rouse is a member of the River Road Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Bethesda, Maryland.