In a 'recent' interview, the artist David Hockney made it clear that he thought that too many gay men are now determined to lead
boring ordinary married lives. I can understand ( but not agree) where he is coming from, for I suspect he feels that some gay men are losing their queer slightly subversive
edge in an attempt to be part of the mainstream.
I see things slightly differently.
Two years ago
today we got married.
We got married because we wanted to.
We wanted to publicly declare our relationship.
We wanted to celebrate that fact with our families and our friends
We wanted to, be married in the eyes of the law of the land with all of the legal benefits that allows us
We wanted to have the same rights afforded to every straight couple.
And we wanted to dress up and wear shiny shoes!
Our marriage also unearthed interesting feelings that we did not expect.
Days before the wedding, cards of congratulations and gifts started to appear. A bottle of champagne here, a bunch of flowers there. Hundreds of cards, scores of gifts, money and good wishes arrived and they overwhelmed us because neither the Prof and I
expected anything.
We didn't expect anything because, I suspect deep down, we didn't really felt that we
deserved anything. Weddings were for straights, and not for middle aged old poofs like us. It's a subconscious idea that we thought only existed in the minds of bigots.
And we and the
" actors of the piece" we actually thinking it!
Auntie Glad, in her own morally right way of looking at things made it clear as she dropped off a card and a wedding present " It's the law of the land! " she observed simply.
A 96 year old, a devout christian getting on with a huge change of thinking because common sense told her so.
If she could get her head around things, we could, I remember thinking.
The wedding was lovely. It was lovely because it felt right.
It was right for us and it was right
legally
And
morally it felt right.
And if that's us selling our gay, subversive side?
So be it.
I never had a subversive side anyhow
Hey ho!