Berta's Funeral

I’m sitting in the overflow of a chapel in Mapleton Utah at the funeral of Bertita Dequiensabe.

As I look around, I see a spectrum of diversity I have never witnessed in a chapel. I see diverse races, ethnicities, and nationalities. I see a broad spectrum of genders, expressions, and presentations. I see pink hair, body piercings, and bare shoulders. I see gay couples, lesbian couples, and interracial couples.

More than anything, I see love. I see a room full of people who know how to love and be loved in ways that defy convention. Regrettably, for reasons I do not fully understand, the authentic expressions of our love are not fully accepted in our religious community. It’s heartbreaking. At times, it’s unbearable.

Seeing the many faces of love flood this chapel fills me with both hope and sorrow. Hope, because the chapel before me is a vision of how beautiful our church pews could be every Sunday. Yet also sorrow, because it is only at the funeral of another queer soul that this vista is made possible.