In less than a month Mark and I will be celebrating our two year anniversary. It's a big deal for me because it's the first long term relationship where I've been excited about the marking of a milestone. When I stop and think about it, all I can really say is "Wow! Two years." I'm not sure why such things astonish me. It's not like we're incapable of sustaining a relationship. Two years would prove otherwise. It's exciting! We are both stubborn and strong willed. But we are both easy-going enough that we're not getting worked up over little things. It's a good match.
Over these two years I've typically referred to Mark as my boyfriend. Some people have referenced him as my partner or husband. Lover. Husbear. Better half. Sexual Life Partner... regardless of what we call each other we know how we feel about each other. YET... the question remains, what do I call him? It's more than a 'label' thing. It's a title. It's a definition of the reality of the situation. I'm not pushing labels or saying that everyone must use the same designation.
For me... Partner seems too business-like. Lover seems too short-term relationship. Boyfriend seems to un-serious for being together for two years.
The same questions come up when I think about what to call a relationship. We're not married. We're more than dating. Seeing each other? LTR? "This is Mark. He's my Sexual Life Partner. We're in a long term Multi-Locale Co-habitive relationship." Obviously I wouldn't use a title to introduce him every time. Tho when someone asks it's nice to have an answer.
More and more gay couples are getting married. Some are very proud of the title of husband or wife. There is an obvious way to introduce each other, but what about the rest of us? What have you heard couple use? What do you use?Labels: mark, relationship |
