to the men who blessed me with civil rights-

I remember the day

June 26, 2015.

held a friend close and

celebrated legalized love.

two years and 6 months later

and I have to ask

why is my love legal,

why do certain men get to tell me who I can love,

why can a body of people quite irrelevant to my life

decide if I can have a wedding?

there are over 70 countries

where my existence is illegal.

why do bodies of men no larger than dust in this vast universe

have the right to kill my brothers and sisters

for loving each other?

so, this letter is part thank you and part fuck you.

thanks for giving me your permission to love

but fuck you for thinking it was yours to give in the first place.

yours truly,

loving because I want to.