Catching the Bouquet

Kelby and I were offered some comp tickets through a friend to see a press performance of a new musical opening here in New York, Romantic Poetry. We were very excited to see it, since we loved the work of the playwright and composer, John Patrick Shanley (Doubt, Moonstruck) and Henry Kreiger (Dreamgirls, Side Show).

And while it wasn't a very good show at all (disappointing really...) something kind of amazing happened during the show.

At one point there is a bride onstage, the scene takes place after her wedding. And at the end of the song, there is a big finish and she throws her bouquet into the audience.

And guess what? I totally caught it.

Actually, it kind of landed with a thud into my lap, I didn't "catch" it. In fact I was terrified because I wasn't expecting to have anything thrown at me. But was so elated that I ended up with it.

I guess that makes me the bride.

The Proposal

I'm only 24. Which I consider still young, yet old enough to be an adult. I sure don't feel like an adult, but as the days and months seem to fly by, I slowly pick up evidence of the fact that I am indeed, well on to my way of becoming an adult.

Friends and cousins are getting married, others are having babies, and unfortunately relatives and older people I know are passing on. It's life. It's what happens. But its very different when it starts to happen to you.

I've had one close friend get married and two are currently engaged and planning to get married in the next year. So I am undeniably at that new frontier in my life where as mid-twenty-somethings, that's what we do.

Except I'm gay.

Not that being gay is bad. Things are certainly easier today, and have changed drastically during my 24 years on Earth. But when it comes to these traditional white-picket-American-Dream style things (marriage, 2.5 kids, etc.) I'm conflicted.I want all those things, but by my very nature, I'm not "traditional." 

Imagine my surprise when my boyfriend, whom I live with and have been together for over 4 years, did the most traditional thing a man could do. He proposed to me last week.

I replied an immediate yes and so happy. I am completly in love with him. And the proposal wasn't a complete surprise. It was something we have seriously talked about. But I was so over the moon that I didn't really have time to think... until now.

Do not get me wrong. I love him and want nothing more then to spend the rest of my life with him. But growing up, getting married wasn't really an option for me. Gay marriage is new. So as a kid, I didn't fantizise about my big fat gay wedding I was going to have. And now as it's becoming an reality thoughts are running through my head... Do I wear white? Does he? What about wedding parties, do we both have best men? and a million others...

Anyone who has seen an episode of Bridezilla knows that getting engaged and planning a wedding is hard, but I think doing all that and being gay I'm realizing is even harder.