Geoff!

Geoffrey,

please drop me a line and let me know you're okay.

Please.

Final Words...

Once again Geoff manages to post content that makes my day!

After a weekend of thinking, re-thinking, ignoring and making light of my own concepts of (and issues with) work, commitment and relationships - this post by Kareem Minhas (Khareem TV) puts me on the spot.

Admittedly, my reaction to his video-post is an emotional one - and many people might not think it blog-worthy at all. However, I get the feeling that a lot of us are going through patches of significant change at the moment. Personally, I'm inspired by how other people navigate these waters. I find solace and renewed hope in personal accounts of journeys towards self realisation.

Maybe you do too.

Lest We Forget

Lately it seems Geoff is my main source of inspiration for blogging. But if you look at this video he made - you'll understand why.

Brilliant job Geoff!!

One moment of compassion

Geoff has the uncanny ability to stir emotions that have been bottled up for years. Read this, and click through to his blog to show how much you love him! (Keep your kleenex handy!)

The Pinwheel

I saw a rainbow pinwheel on the way to work this morning. It was spinning furiously in the wind, the colors blurring together under a storm filled sky.

It only took a fraction of a second for it to grab my attention, a bright patch of color on a dank morning. Scattered rays of morning sunlight made their way through the gloom as if to shine a celestial spotlight on this pinwheel and it was beautiful ---the colors were luminous.

As a gay man, I’m conditioned to claim sight of the rainbow.

The rainbow flag is a symbol of pride, living your life openly without apology so my first thought as I drove by was “How cool”…. and then before I could finish the next thought, “I wonder who would put that……”-- I realized I was passing the cemetery.

It was placed on someone’s grave.

My disappointment evaporated quicker than it took for me to hurtle by at 60 mph as I realized someone must have been loved very much to deserve such a colorful announcement. I resolved to stop by on my way home after work and have a look.

I was right.

Someone was in fact loved very much.

As I drove into the cemetery and wound my way along the narrow road I found the pinwheel. It marked the grave of a little boy.

The pinwheel was only one part of an elaborate collection marking the baby’s grave. I stood there looking at the shrine, cars and trucks whizzing by several yards away just as I had that very morning and I was surprised at my own emotions viewing the grave of this infant.
I didn’t know him or his family. I didn’t know the specifics of their situation or the circumstances of his death, but I felt the loss nonetheless.

I could imagine the excitement, all the planning and preparation that must’ve gone into his intended arrival. I could imagine the laughter and joyful anticipation as his parents discussed their dreams for their miracle of life.

I could also clearly imagine the tears and heartbreak which must have replaced all those hopes and dreams. It was evident by the care and choice of their display on his grave.

I know tomorrow when I pass that little pinwheel on my way to work, I’m going to smile at the sight of it just as I will each day it greets me. I’ll smile because of the love that child was met with before and after his birth. A physical existence all too brief. A spiritual existence which will last forever in the hearts of the people who knew him…..and in my heart as well, even though I only came to know him through a spinning pinwheel on a rainy morning on my way to work.

Life and Times of a Gay Man In Idaho