Day 10, our second to last full day here in Grand Cayman and boy was it windy! Thankfully the sun was out a lot more today, which made for a rather enjoyable pool/beach day.
It began with some sunbathing that I know I’ll miss quite a bit when I return to Toledo in a few days, as it seems to be cloudier more than not there during the winter season. Anyway, the ocean was extremely rough today with waves well over my head, but that didn’t stop me from spending some time out there bobbing up and down along with them. I actually did do some snorkeling today even in all that choppiness and was glad I did, as I saw a huge starfish that was at least a couple of feet around. Even better, I saw a pretty cool fish that had two long whiskers that it used to move the seafloor around as it looked for something to eat.
Later in the day, after taking a break from the sun and surf, I caved in and went across the street to the local tourist shop. I know I promised myself I wasn’t going to buy anything other than food on this trip, but I decided I wanted to remember this trip with at least a t-shirt. Thirty minutes later I had two of them, a shell necklace, and two Christmas ornaments for our tree next year. Man, I’m such a tourist. LOL.
After catching some more rays for a little while after that, the temperatures really started to drop. That’s when I hopped out of the ocean and jumped into the hot tub where my partner had spent most of his afternoon. There we met a nice couple from Roanoke, Virginia who were extremely nice and totally embraced our relationship like the couple had from last night’s dinner. I’m truly thankful that the world seems to be changing their views more and more for the better with same-sex relationships. But even more so, it’s a far cry from last year’s vacation when one of the couples we met ended up lecturing my partner and I about the sins of homosexuality and how God doesn’t approve of those types of relationships. Nevertheless, in spite of this past rejection and many others of our sexuality, we took a risk and asked this couple to join us for dinner at a restaurant named The Lighthouse and I’m definitely glad we did.
Not only was dinner amazing, but so was the company. We dined out on a long pier over the water and had plenty of enjoyable conversation, none of which frowned upon any aspect of our relationship. I must say that I was kind of surprised though when they told me how much they enjoyed watching Brokeback Mountain and had even visited a gay bar once just to have some fun doing something different. Man, I hope one day that everyone else will be a lot more like this couple from Roanoke.
So as my second to last full day here in Grand Cayman came to a close, I was left with a lot of gratitude to my Higher Power for meeting a wonderful couple from Roanoke, Virginia, who looked at my partner and I with love and acceptance and nothing less…
Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson
OMG Andrew, I’m so jealous. That place looks like heaven.