A lullaby lauding your purple stripe for the fearless who fought for Stonewall Inn, praising your bold red stripe honoring Harvey Milk's resilient courage, blessing your orange stripe of healing for wounds external and internal. A lullaby filled with mourning for all those who died of AIDS, forgiving cake bakers who discriminate against same sex marriages, and softening the hardened hearts of those who would ban your rainbow. A lullaby for crude crosses burned on lawns of gays, welcoming us to our first town together, for the school district that would not hire my wife, to soothe our children who suffered jeering taunts, to praise our valiant transgender son who came out to his dad, to celebrate our thirty-six years bonded together in marriage. May you wave proudly in the wind, a benediction on our dreams of equality, glorifying the whole spectrum of love.
Pat McCutcheon
