Costa Rica: Love Wins!

My heart is full of joy today. My adoptive home away from home Costa Rica  became the first country in Central America to legalize marriage equality.

It’s been a long time coming waiting the 18+ months since Costa Rica’s Supreme Court decision to go into effect, but as of midnight last night, celebrations rang through the country as LGBT Ticos could finally feel closer to having the rights of their fellow country men and women. The first couple wed there shortly after midnight, as all eyes watched and wept. Including their president, who is in support of the decision. 

I spoke with friends there who spoke of crying and laughing, holding those near to them. Frustrated that they cannot be partying in the streets during this coronavirus, but grateful as hell to be yet again leading the way on the world stage while being a small country. 

Costa Rica is a small nation with a huge heart and big ideas for the future. I’m proud to call myself a Tico Gringo (Tingo) today. What incredibly positive news that the world could use now in this time of pandemic, negativity, and uncertainty. 

Costa Rica is now the 29th country to legalize marriage equality.

Te Extaño, mi hermoso país Costa Rica. 

Hoy tengo el corazón lleno de alegría porque, a partir de la medianoche, mi hogar adoptivo fuera de casa, Costa Rica, se convirtió en el primer país de América Central en legalizar la igualdad en el matrimonio.

 Ha pasado mucho tiempo esperando la entrada en vigor de la decisión de la Corte Suprema de Costa Rica de hace varios años, pero a partir de la medianoche de anoche, las celebraciones sonaron en todo el país, ya que los Ticos LGBT finalmente podían sentirse más cerca de tener los derechos de sus compatriotas.  y mujeres.  La primera pareja se casó allí poco después de la medianoche, mientras todos los ojos miraban y envolvían.  Incluido su presidente.

 Hablé con amigos que hablaron de llorar y reír, sosteniendo a los que estaban cerca de ellos.  Frustrados de que no pueden estar de fiesta en las calles durante este coronavirus, pero agradecidos como el infierno por estar una vez más liderando el escenario mundial mientras son un país pequeño.

 Costa Rica es una nación pequeña con un gran corazón y grandes ideas para el futuro.  Estoy orgulloso de llamarme hoy un Tico Gringo (Tingo).  Qué noticia increíblemente positiva que el mundo podría usar ahora en este momento de pandemia, negatividad e incertidumbre.

I LOVE YOU AND MISS YOU COSTA RICA! 

Mum’s Day

My beautiful mother never liked Mother’s Day.

She watched her grandmother’s body wither away with bone cancer, causing her terrible pain towards the end of her life, when my mother was a child, and these memories never left her.

A little girl in the 1950s and 1960s, my mum thought her grandmother always had a funny laugh and dance after, but it was the old lady’s shrieks every 10 or so minutes from excruciating pain spasms and subsequent shivers, shakes, and jolts of misery and ache, sending her body feet above her hospital bed after that my mother was recalling. The doctors would eventually amputate my great-grandmother’s leg to stop the spread of the cancer that would kill her, but their efforts failed and she would be in so much pain that she eventually begged to die.

There were no mercy killings for cancer patients then in rural Missouri, so my great-grandmother eventually chose to be lobotomized. She died in a vegetative state a few months later...on Mother’s Day, 1961. My mom was barely 10.

When my mother’s mother got off the phone after hearing of her mother’s death, she did not shed ONE tear--just said "neither she nor I could have asked for a better Mother's Day present,” meaning her grandmother and the family were free from my great-grandmother’s horrific suffering and pain.

As a result, they never really celebrated Mother’s Day again and my mother never enjoyed the day after, despite her kids always wanting to do something for her.

Here she is pictured with my father, looking flawless, probably circa 1969-1972. I don’t honestly know.

What I do know is I celebrated today in honor of the woman who raised me, a fashionista and style icon in her day. And a ferocious mother when she could be. Even if she didn’t always care for the day, I always cared for her.

I love you mom.

❤️❤️& 🌸🌹& AML! Happy #mothersday ❤️ ♈️ ♉️ 👩🏾‍🎤 👩‍👦

Dear America: A plea