Ten Times Stronger

Ten years is a very long time.

For me, that's a fourth of my entire life so far. 1/4 of my life has been to share it with this man who has constantly been my anchor, my equal, and my source of strength and love.  Within those ten years, we have traveled, made friends, raised dogs, become uncles, danced, gotten drunk, explored new horizons, wrote, learned games, made games, ran games, shared stories, invested, learned to cook, burned food, gotten into accidents, met horrible people, found friends, strengthened ties, and learned to believe in so many things.



Even back when we first met, we already saw hints of these small but special moments. From wavelength encounters where we seemed to just happen to be thinking the very same things, to patterns in unfolding events in our lives that were hard not to read as signs that were showing us where to go.

I don't blog often. I know I tend to write more when it comes to creative writing. But when it comes to blog posts, I tend to be more quiet. I celebrate our moments, but I know a part of me worries people might just assume we're showing off. Or bragging.  But in the ten years that we've been together, we've seen our share of people who would rather pull us down than celebrate what we've found. And we've survived everything from storms to tragedies, from natural disasters to supernatural twists, and we continue to get stronger each passing day.



There was a time when I saw you in passing and I took a selfie with a friend only because I wanted to at least have a single image of you (even if you were just in the background, walking away.)  I had no idea if I would ever meet you or see you again. It felt foolish. But it felt like something I just had to do.



Ten years later, I realize that chance encounter was one of those random moments full of meaning. We surround ourselves now with friends and people whom we can even call our "gay family."  We slowly tip-toe towards a time when our respective families may even choose to celebrate Christmas and New Year together! We continue to grow stronger together, overcoming anything that stands in our way.  I love you, Rocky.  I shall live with baduy pride to be part of you for the rest of my life.