A fairly popular hashtag on social media in recent months has been #loveislove, a mantra that was linked to the Supreme Court decision that made gay marriage legal throughout the United States.
On the surface, the tag made sense to me, because love is love. What else would it be?
As an MC at hundreds of weddings in the past decade, I've witnessed love first hand. Seriously, I don't know if two people have ever been more in love with each other than on their wedding day. It is love defined.
Same-sex marriage was legalized in California in early 2008, then was rescinded in the November 2008 election. The proposition that made same-sex marriage illegal in that election was thrown out in 2013 and since then -- and up until the nationwide ban was lifted -- California was one of the states where same-sex marriage was legal.
However it was not until 2015, coincidentally about one month before the Supreme Court decision was made, that I MC'd my first same-sex wedding in San Diego at the Hotel Del Coronado.
And yes, there is a difference. It was two men getting married. That's different than the previous 300 or so weddings I have been privileged to be a part of.
But the one thing that was not different ... love. Because, yes, love is love.
Sure, there are things I had to be mindful of, like being mindful to not to say "bride and groom" (in general, just say the couples first names); asking politely which last name I would use for their introduction (the same thing I would ask any couple); and being non-chalant when inquiring if there would be a best man and maid of honor (just ask who will be making up your wedding party).
This idea is illustrated perfectly in this photo essay. Twenty-two wedding photos. Twenty-two gay couples that are in love with each other.
Brian and Todd are toasted at the wedding on the beach in Coronado. They celebrated their wedding at the Hotel Del Coronado in May 2015.
This concept that love is indeed love finally struck me when I saw my couple, Brian and Todd, standing side-by-side as they listened to their friend give his toast. There they were, standing next to each other, basking in the euphoria that this was their wedding day. They were surrounded by people they love and people that love them back equally.
Until that moment, I will admit, I saw them as two guys ... as a gay couple. But at that moment, surrounded by love, they were not "just two gay guys" ... they were like every other couple on their wedding day.
They were two people in love. The gender didn't matter.
Love knows no boundaries. It was "love is love" personified.