By Pr. Ruth Frost, DTNA Board Member

San Francisco's City Hall has been in the news a lot lately. San Francisco's Mayor, Gavin Newsom, the Board of Supervisors and various other city officials have decided to challenge the State of California to live out the principles of equality outlined in the State's constitution, by offering marriage licenses that do not discriminate against LGBT people.

Phyllis and I went down on February 13th to participate both as applicants and as officiants. We stood in a long line which snaked three stories around the rotunda all the way to the basement on that day. There were an incredible number of couples with babies and toddlers and others who had taken school aged kids out of school to rush down to be married. We were there with our daughter, Noelle. The atmosphere was electric with anticipation, appreciation and general ebullience. After hours of waiting, it looked like the feeding of the five thousand as folks shared whatever they had brought - power bars, water bottles, peanuts and champagne - with one another.

Phyllis was there in collar to hold up the professional side of our lives, and I was without collar to hold up the personal side of our lives, making her promise to marry me first before she officiated at any weddings. Needless to say, she broke that promise, as people saw her collar and begged her to marry them in line. The top gallery of the rotunda was the wedding gallery with several stations for the ceremonies. One city commissioner, who had gone down to City Hall for another purpose, took one look at the crowds and exclaimed, "This is marriage triage! Scrub me up, give me a gown and I'm good for the day!" That was the spirit throughout the day.

When we finally reached the head of the ceremonies line, Supervisor Bevan Dufty saw us and threw his arms around us whispering, "Would you like me to do your wedding in the Board of Supervisors' chambers?" We said yes, delightedly, knowing that the elegant chambers was saturated with the history of Harvey Milk and Mayor Moscone. A gay male couple whom Phyllis had already married accompanied us as our witnesses, together with a lesbian couple who were their witnesses. The six of us, together with Noelle, shared this experience. For ours, she stood in the middle with our arms around her as we clasped hands with each other. It was a sweet moment to exchange vows with her in our embrace. Afterwards, she pelted all of us with flower petals and hugs were exchanged all around between us couples, strangers to one another, initially, and now friends.

By the end of that day our Mayor had lost his voice and simply had to listen to the crowds chanting "Thank you, thank you'" Someone has asked us why we got married after nearly twenty years of already feeling very married. We did it not to feel more married (we don't), but for the following reasons: 1) to stand in solidarity with our city in this action on our behalf, recognizing that the city was doing for all of us what St. Francis and First United did for the wider church 14 years ago. 2) to solidify a written record of who we are as family to one another for Noelle's sake. 3) to witness and support others' joy in their relationships of love and commitment. 4) to live our "now" already in anticipa- tion of the future, no matter what the short term legal outcome is. 5) to say "yes!" to love between us and among us.

Anyhow, it was - and is - a joyous turn of events and one that makes us proud to be San Franciscans. It is also our sense that a great wound in the city's history left in the wake of the assassinations of Harvey Milk and Mayor Moscone over twenty years ago is now healing. There haven't been so many queer people in City Hall since that sad event.

Thank God - and Mayor Newsom - it's a celebration today!