Gay Pride Day

I don't have too much to say in the way of a "profound" blog entry tonight.  Well, it's 12:15 am where I am, so it's really Sunday.  I just have a bell of mindfullness to set out to the zaadz community.......

I was marking down dates that I have assignments due for school and noticed that 6/25 is Gay Pride Day.  It made me think of my brother, my AIDS clients who have died and taught me more than any PhD will ever teach me, new friends that I have made through school, and people that I work with.  Oddly enough, my mom, not knowing, rented Broke Back Mountain and asked me to come over and watch it as a study break on Sunday.  I am sure that she doesn't know. 

I think Gay Pride Day is a day for all of us -- not just those who are gay, bisexual, lesbian, transgenderal, etc.   I think it is a bell of mindfulness to send metta to all groups that are marginalized and treated unfairly - as if they were not sentient beings for whatever reason.  I hope one day we can have a Pride Day -- that celebrates all sentient beings' freedom from our illusions (or delusions) that we are separate and different.  That we all deserve and receive forgiveness, love, equality, acceptance, and empowerment.

So to all those who will be proudly displaying their rainbow flags, I honor your light and your integrity to making a difference in the world and wanting to be heard and seen.  I honor the community that you have created and the untold fights and battles you continue to fight.  To all those who love someone who is celebrating Gay Pride Day, I honor the depth of your love, despite what the world would have us think.  To all those who still think we are all that different, I wish you space in your heart and mind that someday we will all realize that the only real thing is LOVE.

So, to honor all those people who have touched my life and are part of the gay community, I bow deeply and humbly to you.  It is with great love that you have let me be a part of your life and that you have helped me to understand and be an advocate for your community. 

I send metta to:  Harlan, Mike, Michael, Traci, Ron, Pete & his 2 brothers, Paul, David, Tommy, Lee, Kevin, and countless others that have left a mark on my heart when I lived in TN and worked with People with AIDS...  and to all of those PWAs that do not need hospice services thanks to finding ways to living healthier.  More Metta to Gay Men's Health Crisis (NY) and Zen Hospice Project (CA) that has worked for so many years with dying people who needed to be companioned.  And to my co-worker John, who has started a grief group for Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals, and Transgendered individuals so that they too have a safe haven to grieve in a community setting.

Love is all that ever has been.  Love will be all that is left when it is all said and done.  May the merit of each individual's struggle bring comfort and strength to people who continue to fight their battles alone.