This engagement photo was taken sometime in early 1988 (February, I think). We had met through the church youth group, and had known each other for a decade. Two good little Transcona Lutherans.
I was 24, she was 23. We were both virgins when we married. (Remember, we were good little Transcona Lutherans.) We had followed all the "rules" laid down by our church and our society.
We were absolutely clueless. Absolutely fucking clueless. Deer in the headlights. I wish I knew then what I know now, and I wish I had been strong enough to stand up for myself instead of pleasing my family and church.
After our separation in 1988, I returned to Winnipeg while she stayed in Toronto. She came out of the closet as a lesbian, and I came out of the closet as a gay man. (How I found out she was a lesbian is a full story in itself. Another time.)
I stayed at her place when I came to Toronto for Pride in 2002, and we had a chance to chat and get caught up on each other's lives.
She told me the pink dress went to a Toronto drag queen. Somehow, that seems so very fitting.
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