It's not exactly the meeting of eyes that you'd always dreamed of. Your eyes bumped briefly - clumsily - said their beg pardons and moved on to track the other singles at the party. Not exactly lonely, yet not exactly wishing to remain single, you sip quietly on your drink and try your best to look aloof, and void of any signs of desperation.

Halfway through your second drink, and you feel lighter, chattier. You schmooze your way around the people at the the mixer, discovering facts about new friends, rehashing memories with old ones. The social lubricant in the drink has made you feel more at ease with people, and you soon find yourself standing alongside the owner of that same pair of eyes that you bumped into earlier, wondering of the person behind them.

A friend that you have in common with this stranger introduces you, and you slide into the interview stage, gathering inforformation about them: their age; their job; their relationship status, and any other piece of miscellaneous data that they offer. You find them warm and engaging, and bend in closer to listen to their stories, their ideas, and their awful jokes (which make you laugh nonetheless). You think this comfort may be the alcohol, and you make the switch to water, but as the evening slows down and the number of party guests shrinks, you remain in the corner with your new friend, laughing, joking, and chatting as though you'd always known them. For a brief moment you entertain the thought that maybe you have always known them, but discount the thought, based on the lateness of the hour and your earlier drinks. As the party ends, you exchange numbers and go your separate ways.

The next few weeks are a flurry of phone calls, emails, and late night chat sessions. You feel enchanted with this beautiful stranger, enchanted with the number of views you have in common, enchanted with the sense of wonderment you feel when you listen to them talk on the things that they are passionate about. You agree to meet again - and again - and again.

Months pass, and you are happier than you have been in living memory. Getting used to a different person has never been easier. Everything clicks, and you discover a passion that you have never known before. You begin to love them, and everything that they have to offer. You begin to talk of plans for a future together - with all of the clichéd trimmings - kids; dogs; marriage; picket fences. Although your friends and family tell you that it is too soon, believing you to be hasty and lovestruck, you begin to make plans for a wedding. You've dreamed of this partner for the entirety of your lifetime, and refuse to let the opinions of others spoil your plans. Love - with all of its power and grace - has enveloped you, arrested your soul - and you believe that giving the rest of your life to your lover is the one thing that you want to do above all others on this earth. It is the highest achievement of your spirit, to love another in this way. You have waited for such a destiny, longed to have somebody to start a family with, wished for that other soul to reflect who you truly are. Despite the lack of your father's blessings, you wed in a civil ceremony, under a gazebo in the park, in springtime. It is the day of your dreams.

Despite your love, in spite of your wish to be joined together forever, regardless of your wishes to raise a family as loving parents, three days after your wedding the government passes laws that invalidate your marriage. Your union is forbidden, and you feel as though you have been dehumanised, demonised, and otherwise held in contempt for being who you are. You have been cut off from institutions that you hold to be sacred, due to your sexuality. What sort of world is this, you think, when all two lovers want to do is share the rights afforded by many in love, yet are prevented by law from realising this?



Don't just vote, state your case! Why are you for or against gay marriage? My stance: I support gay marriage, and the adoption of children by gay couples, or gay singles.