LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
The Way I See It |
by Steve Elkins, Editor |
In the last issue of Letters I commented on the thought that August always seems to be a magical time of the yearI realize this morning that one of the reasons it seems like magic is because it just goes by so fast. Part of that for us here in the offices of CAMP Rehoboth is the approach of Labor Day Weekend and the SUNDANCE parties that will cap off the summer season and point us into the fall. It's a great feeling to Murray and me to see the huge support that comes from so many people as we work to prepare for this event. I am always dazzled by the generosity of our sponsors, supporters, hosts, volunteers, and co-chairs. From all over townfrom all over the east coastcomes a wonderful and positive feeling of support. Working together we can make a difference in our communities. I've said it many times during the last decadegrassroots change takes place step by step, day by day. That last sentence made me realize that change is exactly what is on my mind this morning. It also reminded me of a little piece from Murray's book of poems, called Baby Steps, in which he talks about how a "shifting particle of sand alters the entire structure of a mighty dune." Each of us can make a difference with our time, our talents, and our financial resources. Over the last few months I, along with many of you around town, have spent numerous hours talking to Washington Post Magazine writer Donna St. George as she prepares her feature story about the changes that have taken place in Rehoboth during the last ten years. Our conversations have reminded me of the great progress we have made as a communityand also of the work that remains to be done. Real change is slowand steadylike the tortoise. On a national level, more change could be seen taking place as American Airlines quickly followed in United Airlines' July 30 decision to offer domestic partner benefits to its employees. The Human Rights Campaign's WorkNet project which tracks this trend says that the two airlines join 70 of the Fortune 500 companies that currently offer these benefits, including AT&T, Chase Manhattan Bank Corp., General Mills, IBM, Mobil Oil, Time Warner and Disney. With gay marriage such a touchstone for middle America, it is domestic partner benefits that are going to be the issue in the coming national election. For the time being we've lost the marriage issue, and though someday that will change, domestic partnership is where that change can start. Besides, we gay people are creative enough to be able to make our relationships whatever we want them to be. It seems to me that it is important that we don't get hung up on the word, marriage. Marriage is, after all, more than a word. Step by step...bit by bit...change comeswho cares if it comes in through the back door! Now that I think about it, most change comes in through the back door. One day it is the middle of August...the next it is the year 2000. One day everyone is wearing Nehru jackets...and the next...guayabera shirts. One day our mother tucks us into bed...and the next day we are almost 50 years old. Change is much easier to take when it happens slowly. Imagine how difficult it would be if we only dropped into our lives every twenty years or sothink of the things we wouldn't know. Twenty years ago AIDS had not entered our lives, there was no www.anything, and CAMP Rehoboth was yet to be born. Who knows what the next twenty years will bring to our lives? |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 9, No. 11, Aug. 13, 1999 |