Friday night my family bundled up and drove the hour and a half into the city to join a rally being held to stand up against the suicide of GLBT teens. It was conducted by a partnership of groups concerned with GLBT issues, but the group I was familiar with was Affirmation: Gay and Lesbian Mormons.
In my younger days, I was no stranger to rallies of all kinds. Getting married and moving as often as we have made that kind of involvement less convenient. Getting older has also made things more complicated as so very few things seem as clear cut as they used to, but I am an activist at heart.
As a gay loving Mormon, I have been so deeply conflicted over the past few years. I have many gay loved ones. So many that I don’t think it’s coincidental. I have come to believe that God leads me to my gay friends to show them His love. I have wrestled and wrestled with God about this issue, and I believe that it is my job to just offer the love I have to my gay friends and let Him sort out everything else.
Friday night we listened to speeches and then walked with our candles through the streets of San Francisco. I got so emotional as I walked behind the stroller, watching Atti bounce up and down with excitement, and thought about these children who had killed themselves. It wasn’t that long ago that their own mother’s pushed them in strollers. And now they are gone.
On this issue we should all agree: no one should be made to feel so hopeless and without worth that they think God would rather they kill themselves than be gay. I just hope that no matter our political or religious points of view, we can remember the very real feelings of our brothers and sisters, and reach out in love first. The costs are so very very high.