Topical Blog Post #1

Marriage has been on my mind ever since I was a little girl. If you look back to the time of works such as, Jane Austen's, Pride and Prejudice you'll easily be able to contrast the reasons for marriage to present day. Today, we are so fortunate to be able to marry for love, not for status or any other agenda. Yet, I find so many people, particularly in our country, who take this privilege for granted. This is something that has bothered me since my parent's divorce. Monogamy and respect for marriage seems to be often, nonexistent.
Take a good friend of my family. He is well known as a highly respected businessman, a generous charity donator, yet he has been divorced three times. Of course, he's not flawless, but something that has recently bothered me about him is that he was for California's proposition 8. A man, who has been divorced three times.
I suppose it is hard for someone to understand something unless they are exposed to it. This is something I try to keep in mind when I find a strong opposition to someone's views. I was fortunate enough to attend a lesbian wedding this summer. My good friend's mom married her life partner in a beautiful ceremony on a gondola, this summer. As the sunset over the bay, I watched the ceremony, and it became clear that this is what marriage is about. What I saw was two people so completely in love with one another. There was no question of faithfulness, no hidden agenda regarding money, just two people who wanted to spend their lives together.
It is hard for me to continue my respect for this man who votes yes on proposition 8, yet makes marriage out to be such a joke himself. I suppose his light hearted view of marriage is his prerogative, but then why should he deny this right to people so sincere about their testimony of love to one another, a testimony in which he mocks so blatantly? Something there just is not right.