Gays, Lesbians and Nova Scotia

Today I am having an Amelia Bedelia kind of day. Seriously, just now I was standing at the elevator and pressed the down button accidentally because I was thinking "I want the elevator to come down to me!" O Dear.

Yesterday there was a giant envelope stuffed in my mailbox. The constant optimist; I immediately thought it was Kaitlyn's and when I saw my name, I was certain it was fashion bug coupons or something. :) I didn't open it right away- it was just sitting there on our table while I rushed around putting away laundry and talking to Megan. (Megan came over to make cookies, do homework and burn incense. Our apartment now smells like a mixture of sewer and Native American burial ground. Awesome. Well, we tried!)

Megan and I had a great conversation about gay and lesbian friends. When I first came to Chicago I can honestly say that I was afraid of people who were homosexual. Not afraid they would do something to me-- but afraid to interact with them, to love them. Maybe it's because I grew up in a small town/farm community where that was not OK to talk about, maybe because I just like hairy rugged men so so much, maybe because I thought my sin was better than anyone else's, maybe I thought that's what God would do to preserve His reputation...I don't know. Anyway, I had this one friend pray for me specifically that I would get over it. Thanks, Jaimie!

About 3 years ago I met this man, William, who was homeless at the time. He asked for money to get something to eat. I was hungry anyway so I asked him to have lunch with me. We had Whoppers at Burger King (which is now a 5/3 Bank- sad!) and talked. He told me openly that he was gay and had AIDS and had trouble finding a job or a place to live partly because of that. By the time that lunch was over, I had grown in compassion and then we went our separate ways. About a week later, I was walking from the "el" and this man in front of me started convulsing. He was a big man- 6'5" and stocky build. He fell to the ground and was foaming at the mouth. People just kept walking by, looking at this man like he was a spectacle and when I called for someone to help- the only person that responded was William! For some reason that blew my little black and white brain to smitherines. Here I had been casting him as this "bad man" character and then he was doing a good thing. I was/am totally humbled. Lesson learned? Life is more complex... people are much more complex than the one dimensional, black and white world I would like to live in that only makes sense on paper.

I still believe that God intended romantic relationships, marriage and sex to be between and man and a woman. But I refuse to let my fear make homosexuals out to be monsters. I refuse to forget 1 Corinthians 6:9-11: "Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."

So finally, I remembered about the envelope and ripped it open. Inside was a guide to visiting NOVA SCOTIA! Giddy is not doing my emotions justice. I spent a large portion of the rest of my night planning a trip- or 12 trips to that glorious land where Anne of Green Gables is from. I'm gonna go- I know I always say that I'm gonna do things and often don't, but I have never wanted to go someplace so badly in my life. Here's my dream place. Part of me thinks it would be so fun to go with a friend (or my chiropractor :) hahaha just kidding!)- someone to share in all that beauty. Another part of me thinks it would make a great retreat- to get away on my own and allow the Lord to draw me close through His fantastic creation. I'm going though..... as soon as I save up some dollars.