It was in November 2011 when Deaf lesbian MJ Ceñidoza first met Karen Anne Magtalas.
“Karen visited the Deaf Festival at the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS0CSB),” MJ recalled. “My friend wanted me to be introduced to her because (this friend) knew that Karen’s house is near my place.”
Initially, MJ thought Karen is also Deaf. “But I remember asking her so many questions, and she couldn’t answer me because she didn’t understand me at all,” MJ laughed. “At that time, she did not yet learn how to do sign language.”
MJ and Karen saw each other repeatedly after that, so that by the early part of December 2011, “I started to fall in love with her,” MJ recalled.
As for Karen, in the latter part of that same month, “I knew I was in love with (MJ),” she said.
What the two has is challenging largely because Karen’s family is non-accepting of what they have. “My family is not very accepting of LGBT people, thus same-sex relationships,” Karen said, adding that “they even force me to stop meeting (other lesbians).”
But MJ said tha her relationship with Karen taught both of them to “be patient, and be more forgiving.”
“When we became an item, Karen started to change my life. She is the very best thing to happen in my life because she loves me no matter what, and she understands me all the time,” MJ said.
The two are already planning to get married. “My future plans with her include making her as my wife someday,” MJ said. “We eventually want to have our own family.”
