The Frenchman

Here is the Frenchman enjoying a siesta at the beach house in Byron. He's not a fan of cards and I think we were playing a game of 'up the river down the river' at the time I took this photo. The game was new to me and a lot of fun. At that point in the weekend the house was a little quieter and a certain calm had descended. Looking at the photo (I'm working overnight now and he's at home) and I feel lucky to have him in my life. Over the weekend I was thinking how great it has been to have him with me over these past almost 12 years. Sure there are times when we have both felt like running a thousand miles the other direction, but I'm glad that we haven't. More often than not we've flown that distance together in our exploration of the planet (and recurrent visits to the Frenchies). It's been important and rewarding for us to have the support of family and friends. The frequent amazement people express when they learn of our longevity as a couple makes me a little sad that gay relationships are often lacking in such support and encouragement that we have had. I hope the future shows a much more encouraging and supportive society, and a more encouraging gay community as well, which has sadly not been as supportive in general as one might expect. I'm pretty sure though that we'll be creating more amazed expressions as the years go by.