I live in Bath County, Virginia, and when I came home the other night, someone had dumped a bag of horse manure on my front porch.

My first thought was, “Damn those rascally squirrels.” But when I turned on the porch light and saw that it was horse manure, I realized that someone out there was sending me a message.

Their message was clear: “You are no longer welcome here in Bath County. Nor in Virginia, for that matter.”

Frankly, I was glad to have the horse manure, but I wished they had dumped it in my flower garden rather than on the welcome mat in front of my front door.

I live alone, had planned to retire here, and I tend to keep to myself. Living in a rural part of a politically conservative state, to survive as a gay man, you keep your head down and you don’t make waves. And unlike everyone else, you certainly do not flaunt your sexuality.

My initial thought when I saw the horse manure was that someone was ticked off about President Obama finally coming out and publicly supporting same-sex marriage. Or perhaps it was this recent federal appeals court decision.

Whichever, the local Virginia bigots are not pleased, and they are beginning to vent their displeasure. I have a sense that it is going to get even more ugly in the coming months. Perhaps it’s time that I pull up stakes and move, before someone torches my house.

DOMA’s final demise in the courts is just a matter of time. For those of us riding the wave at this particular point in history, the ride is painful. But the eventual outcome is assured.