Monday, July 1, 2013

Mormon march in San Francisco Pride 2013

We have come a long way. The Pride march itself is kind of symbolic for me as a Mormon. We have pioneer roots, and our history is rich with accounts of Mormons pulling together and marching with handcarts from place to place to find a location where we were free to be ourselves.

So it is with the Pride march. We put one foot in front of the other as a symbol of the steps we're taking to help ensure inclusion for our LGBT brothers and sisters. For the Pride march every year, we reach the completion of our short journey down Market Street in a little over an hour. But from a larger metaphoric sense, we're still marching on to that end--finding a place where everyone is safe to be their genuine self.

When will we reach the end of our journey? I don't know. But what I do know is that this is the journey our Savior wants us to be undertaking right now, and like the handcart stories of our ancestors, this one will also be filled with wonderful accounts about the kindness of friends we meet along the way.

So to the pioneers that marched yesterday--and those who joined with us in their hearts, enjoy the journey. I'm pretty sure our Savior wants us to do that, too.