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Do Not Resuscitate – A Final Act of Love
“DOMA was overturned” my father texted me on June 26, 2013. On that day, the Supreme Court ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was unconstitutional and that the federal government could not discriminate against married lesbian and gay couples for the purposes of determining federal benefits and protections. I immediately sent a text to my partner. “DOMA was overturned. Do you want to get hitched in a couple of weeks when we are in New York?” We lived in Florida which was one of many states that banned same sex marriages. New York recognized gay marriage. If we married in New York, our marriage would have federal recognition…
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Halfway To Who Knows Where
It is September 1, 2020. One half of a year has passed since starting this journey. 6 months. 181 days. 4,344 hours. 260,640 minutes. 15,38,400 seconds. I made it. I’m not sure what I expected to find when reaching this milestone. I just wanted to get here; to put the days of rawness behind me. And in 6 more months from now, I want to summit the peak of one year on this hijacked journey. To get through a year of firsts without her. To stand on top of 12 months widowed with a 360 degree view and see where I came from and look ahead to where I am…
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When the Band Came to Town
Courtney Walsh wrote this uplifting metaphor on death weeks after her stepmother passed away. Courtney is a junior at the University of Florida studying acting and history. As you will read, she is also a gifted writer. When the band came to town, Mrs. McKittrick was busy baking a pie. She sat near her kitchen window tugging at the dough carefully. A jar of cherry filling waited their turn on the counter, but it wasn’t time for cherries yet. On the quiet street in front of her, the band came marching by. Trumpets, cymbals, and drums thudded down the hot asphalt. But Mrs. McKittrick was busy baking a pie. When…
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Once Upon a Time
As I left the house this morning to have an unpleasant but necessary “you’re at that age” routine medical procedure, I reconfirmed with my daughter that grandpa would be over in a few minutes to drop her off at school instead of me. Her eyes grew big with alarm and I was ready to reassure her that I would be fine, “nothing to worry about”, when she blurted out, “did you leave me any coffee?” So that was it. My daughter’s routine was disrupted, and it better not have included the morning cup of coffee she was used to sneaking from the coffee pot. Oh, how times have changed. Once…
