New St. Valentine's, reprise
The text of a letter I just sent to Savage Love:
"Dear Dan,
I have been a fan now for several years, ever since some advice you gave (among other things) helped me out of an abusive relationship. I read your columns and keep your app on my phone and I've been working my way through the Lovecast archives. I had the pleasure of seeing Savage Love Live last year in Seattle (say hi to the TSARY for me!) and will be seeing you again in Anchorage on Feb 7 (can't wait!). I've always wanted to write to you, but your advice keeps me out of trouble so well that I've just never been able to come up with a question. Well, now I do have a reason to write.
Valentine's Day is coming up. A few years back, I blogged about my own somewhat unique take on the holiday (http://kittysunlover.livejournal.com/463195.html - feel free to share or print), and reposted my thoughts to Facebook in subsequent years. With encouragement from my friends, I'd like to take this idea a step further, maybe try to share it with more people - start a trend. And I thought, where better to start than with the most ideal "New St. Valentine" I can think of?
See, because Valentine's Day isn't about couples and romance. According to the folklore about St. Valentine and his imprisonment (for secretly marrying people against his government's wishes), it's about marriage equality, human rights, and compassion for our fellow human beings. Instead of grousing about being single or complaining that Valentine's Day somehow diminishes the value of one's relationship on the other 364 days out of the year, why not do something to help your fellow man, and tell a friend that you stand by his/her right to marry the person he/she loves? Tell everyone else that you stand by that friend, and everyone else who wishes to marry. Find something to do to get involved and help out.
I'd love to see this becoming a trendy way to celebrate. We won fantastic victories for marriage equality last year, in Washington and three other states. A few states were already there, and more may be starting to come around. But there are 50 states, and that's just in the US. There is still much to be done.
Thanks for reading, Dan, and thanks for everything you do to promote the rights and happiness of your fellow man. (And congratulations to you and your "fellow man" on your recent marriage update! :D)
Dana Bailey
(I know you're not big on real names in the column, so if you decide to print, sign me "New Saint Valentine.")"
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I should go edit that original post and find some more places to repost it...
"Dear Dan,
I have been a fan now for several years, ever since some advice you gave (among other things) helped me out of an abusive relationship. I read your columns and keep your app on my phone and I've been working my way through the Lovecast archives. I had the pleasure of seeing Savage Love Live last year in Seattle (say hi to the TSARY for me!) and will be seeing you again in Anchorage on Feb 7 (can't wait!). I've always wanted to write to you, but your advice keeps me out of trouble so well that I've just never been able to come up with a question. Well, now I do have a reason to write.
Valentine's Day is coming up. A few years back, I blogged about my own somewhat unique take on the holiday (http://kittysunlover.livejournal.com/463195.html - feel free to share or print), and reposted my thoughts to Facebook in subsequent years. With encouragement from my friends, I'd like to take this idea a step further, maybe try to share it with more people - start a trend. And I thought, where better to start than with the most ideal "New St. Valentine" I can think of?
See, because Valentine's Day isn't about couples and romance. According to the folklore about St. Valentine and his imprisonment (for secretly marrying people against his government's wishes), it's about marriage equality, human rights, and compassion for our fellow human beings. Instead of grousing about being single or complaining that Valentine's Day somehow diminishes the value of one's relationship on the other 364 days out of the year, why not do something to help your fellow man, and tell a friend that you stand by his/her right to marry the person he/she loves? Tell everyone else that you stand by that friend, and everyone else who wishes to marry. Find something to do to get involved and help out.
I'd love to see this becoming a trendy way to celebrate. We won fantastic victories for marriage equality last year, in Washington and three other states. A few states were already there, and more may be starting to come around. But there are 50 states, and that's just in the US. There is still much to be done.
Thanks for reading, Dan, and thanks for everything you do to promote the rights and happiness of your fellow man. (And congratulations to you and your "fellow man" on your recent marriage update! :D)
Dana Bailey
(I know you're not big on real names in the column, so if you decide to print, sign me "New Saint Valentine.")"
-----
I should go edit that original post and find some more places to repost it...