Love is love. People should be able to love whomever they wish. It saddens me that the question even has to be asked (though I do absolutely understand why you posed the question, Jannie… I read what you said in blog comment replies about Google searches).

I have a friend whose daughter is gay. The thought of her daughter being discriminated against made her (very accepting) mother cry when she found out that her daughter is gay. What I mean to say is that she feared for her daughter because she is fully aware of the intolerance in this world. She totally accepts her daughter as she is but can’t help but fear how some in society will likely treat her daughter.

I have a friend who is gay. She and her partner are smart, funny, creative people who make the world a better place. Their positive energy and spirit enrich the lives of those around them.

A man I used to work with years ago asked me to attend his sister’s wedding with him. He explained that his family would be expecting him to take a “date”. His family was completely unaware that he was gay. (His family did not approve of homosexuality). I went to the wedding with him. This was when we were in our early 20s. Years went by. I got married and moved to another city. When the Twin Towers were hit on 9/11, I heard his name read on TV as one of the deceased who had worked in one of the towers. Having not seen him in years, I sat weeping when I heard the news. After it sunk in a bit, I realized that part of why I was weeping was that I wondered if he had ever reached a point where he was able to tell his family about his sexual orientation. It made me very sad to think that his family might never have known.

Live and let live in love. Perfectly said, Jannie.

The notion that a person’s sexual orientation can be deemed “not OK” by some people in this world is a hurtful one.

I thought I’d finish up with some quotes about homosexuality:

“I don’t think homosexuality is a choice. Society forces you to think it’s a choice, but in fact, it’s in one’s nature. The choice is whether one expresses one’s nature truthfully or spends the rest of one’s life lying about it.”
~~ Marlo Thomas,
Actress, National Outreach Director for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

“I’m a supporter of gay rights. And not a closet supporter either. From the time I was a kid, I have never been able to understand attacks upon the gay community. There are so many qualities that make up a human being… by the time I get through with all the things that I really admire about people, what they do with their private parts is probably so low on the list that it is irrelevant.”
~~ Paul Newman,
actor, philanthropist

Last but not least, let’s refer to “Dear Abby”:

“In a letter to “Dear Abby” a reader complained that a gay couple was moving in across the street and wanted to know what he could do to improve the quality of the neighborhood. Her suggestion – ‘You could move.’”
~~ Quote from Abigail Van Buren
(Columnist who was known as “Dear Abby”)