The O-town Scene

Celebrate life Keep Up Now! by Terry Ludwig Time to stop being afraid “I feel that I’m dying; I pray, not in vain; that for what I’ve been through we might affect change.” — Rob Ludwig You’re changing. The world is changing. Life is changing. It seems, as soon as you get com- fortable with “what is,” it changes. Why do you desire consistency? Why are you so afraid of change? You’re afraid you won’t have the “right” answers. You’re afraid; you won’t make the “right” choices. You’re afraid you’ll lose what you have. Do you really want to continue living a life filled with fear? You’re me. We’re no different. Together, we make up the world. Because life changes constantly, together, we’re afraid constantly. We’ve projected our fear into the world, creating madness and mayhem. If we want the world to change, it begins with us. We have to start looking at life differently. We have to start accepting that, in this journey called life, everything changes. We need to start embracing change. Together, we’re afraid we won’t have the right answers. Therefore, together we must stop judging the other and help each other choose Love. Together, we’re afraid we won’t make the right choices. There- fore, together we must forgive the other for the unloving choices they make and love them for giving us a chance to be Love, once again. Together, we’re afraid of losing what we have. Therefore, we have to start loosening our grip on what we have and share it with everyone. Whatever we share, we strengthen. We need to recognize ourselves in our brothers and our brothers in ourselves. Only then will we realize we’re not alone on this journey. When we realize we’re not alone, we’ll embrace and love, change instead of fearing it. Keep up Now! with the flow of higher consciousness, and stay connected to your Source. — Terry Ludwig Terry Ludwig’s brother, Rob, passed away in 2004 after battling AIDS. Before he passed, he shared his message. “Keep Up Now.” is the result of that communication. She can be reached at keepup- now@gmail.com, and followed on Twitter and Facebook. When we realize we’re not alone, we’ll embrace and love, change instead of fearing it. you choose As a young man I was told that there was no difference between gay and straight relationships, except for the sexual nature. As any relationship grew, the desire for sexual intimacy would wear away, and what you would be left with is a best friend, if you were lucky. Also, some wise advice that if I chose the gay lifestyle I should be prepared to be a very lonely man. Both pieces of advice came from my parents. Today I can celebrate another bit of parental advice that falls just short of a bedtime story. There is a huge difference in same-sex relations. Men know men better, and women know women better. That is a plain, simple truth, which even heterosexual couples would tell you. I celebrate that I have a best friend that becomes my sexual partner, not the other way around. I celebrate that this lifestyle that I was born into is far from lonely. I celebrate not living a lie, and by being truthful have avoided causing myself or others pain by hiding who I am for the sake of another’s morality. I can look at my life thus far and be proud of my achievements, and even my downfalls. I have seen more and done more than most men I know my age, and part of this is because of my extended family, my gay family. I have done extensive travel to places I would not have afforded otherwise, I have met famous people and have been to some of the most extravagant affairs, and I have settled down in the country with my home, which has no mortgage. These things happened because I am gay. I celebrate that I have an expendable income and decide what and where it goes to. Guest Column I can now celebrate that I can legally marry in New York if I chose. Although I will point out that I still think an LLC is the best way to go to avoid inheritance tax. I can even celebrate knowing that. I celebrate that I am still close friends with both my ex partners and their husbands. I celebrate life every- day knowing that I am responsible for my own happiness. I celebrate that no matter what anyone says about the way I love, that it is still my way, and I will shine. Chris Wilson is the owner of Clean Me Blog, an organic farmer and baker, as well as a freelance writer. He holds license with the EPA, is Hazmat and OHSA certi- fied, and is an ordained minister and a retired chef. Writers — Christopher Wilson The Scene is hiring experienced feature writers, as well as those interested in contributing reviews of music, films and theater. E-mail clips to editor@otownscene.com July 7, 2011 O-Town Scene 19 the Diversity Scene July 7-13

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