This past week I have felt a great amount of support from many of my good friends and family. I am so grateful for all them. THANK YOU! This post is going to be about free agency. I had a discussion with a lady at the gym. I am usually not a talkative person when I am working out but for some reason this gal seemed like a very open person. Initially we talked about the tv show that was on, I asked her where she was originally from, etc. Get to know you questions. While talking with her, I had the feeling I should open up to her about myself on a more personal level. I had already figured out she was gay and had a girlfriend. She knew I was LDS and served a mission. So I dived in and told I was SGA (same gender attracted). She told me she was wondering if that was the case. And then she started asking me a million questions. Like, how could I give up the possibility of a sexual relationship, did my family disown me, and the one I usually get, doesn't the church kick people like me out. It was an interesting conversation to say the least. To answer her the question about not having a sexual relationship I pointed out to her that no matter who you are, your orientation, your marital status, relationship status, and plain old living breathing person, we are all giving up one thing for another. We are in a constant state of choices and consequences. And we should be in a constant state of taking responsibility or owning our choices and the consequences. This is what I am trying to teach my girls. I give them choices and try to help them see the possible consequences but allow them ultimately to make the choice. This lady at the gym was one of the very few people I have told about myself that actually understood what I was trying to point out. Yes I am gay, yes I am LDS, yes I choose to be active in the church and yes I am not in a sexual relationship. I have learned, the hard way, that no matter the excuse, your choices are yours. Satan would have us believe we are forced into things or that its not our fault. Anything to get us to avoid the reality of our choices and their consequences. I avoided my choices and consequences for many years. I tried not to think about who I was hurting. I tried very hard to blame others for my choices. All of that time I lost because I chose to run away from my choices. I can never get those years back. However I can choose now to do better. I have had people become very upset with me for not following their idea of how I should live my life...from both the LDS and non-LDS sides. I try very hard to make choices based on my relationship with Heavenly Father. I know my life choices will not make sense to many people. But I am not living my life for other people. I am not perfect at it but I am trying and I won't give up trying. And I respect that each one of us has the God given right to choose for themselves.