#Tie #Exhale #Breathe

#Tie #Exhale – #Breathe E_X_A_L_E – Japan_Breathe – Haiti_Exhale – Revolutions_ Breathe – Illness of self, loved ones, friends_Exhale – Wisconsin_Breathe… Breath is life. Breath creates space. When we focus on our breath we are more available to ourselves, others and the universe. Focused breathing prevents panic.
Pause now, check your breath; what is it saying? What are you feeling? Is there something you need to change/do? Is it time for a walk? :-) I’m doing that next.
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#Tie #Queer – Queer!

#Tie #Queer – Queer! – My definition: Way out of the box! Queer means I’m NOT normal! Queer means I dance to my-own-beat and the beat of the world, not the beat created by the market. Queer means I accept ALL of the consensual ways you are sexual, even though I may not be attracted to it.

Queer is the first “Q” in LBGTQQI :-) and for many of us, stands for all of us and beyond.
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#Tie #Femme – FEMME!!

#Tie #Femme – FEMME!! Gets me excited just writing the word – Femme!

Femme! Not the opposite of Butch, that’s a butch fantasy – except of course when she wants to be. Otherwise, Femmes can stand alone and/or with each other without any need for a butch to qualify them – as Femme.
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#Tie #Shame – #Trouble

#Tie #Shame – #Trouble – Yesterday Jen Cross and I talked about what it meant to be “in trouble” and specifically at work, but generally, well…just in general. We agreed that the idea of “getting in trouble” with someone is childish and ridiculous. I believe that it’s an old threat that is focused on shame and shaming. As adults we take responsibility for our actions, then we work with/accept the consequences – we don’t “get in trouble”, (unless of course we’re doing it for fun.)
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it gets different (doesn’t it?) – Jen Cross

Jen Cross responds to recent suicides amongst youth who are or are assumed to be queer.


“Today I feel helpless and sad: gender-based violence isn’t ending, not for folks who have been assigned to “woman” and not for folks who’ve been assigned to “man.” The borders of each of these genders is so violently patrolled; no one has to be gay or queer to get bullied because someone thinks they’re not acting like a real man, or like a real woman. When are we going to stop?”

http://writingourselveswhole.org/

#Tie #Gender #Androgyny

As you can see below, I’m not much of a blogger and I thought this conversation might be big enough to continue off FB….

Human


Many if not most of us are born androgynous from the waist up. If we live long enough, many of us will die the same way. Fresh! White 2010

Our sex determines our role in reproduction. Our genders are made up by people who have a need to control our behavior. Some of those folks are religious, some of those folks are governments and many of these folks are corporations and businesses who profit from sharp descriptions of what gender is.

Some of us don’t fit into our assigned gender roles, some of us don’t want to fit. In the end, when someone is saving your life, you may not care about their gender or gender presentation, you are just glad someone saved your life.

By allowing ALL of us to be the FULL person we feel we can be, we might actually advance ourselves as a species. Currently we are in too many ways living with 1st century mentalities in the ways we reject and fear our differences. Androgynous, transgender, two-spirit and non-gendered people have obviously been around since we have existed as humans. We waist a tremendous amount of resources, financially, socially and spiritually when we are rejecting who many of us are. Resources that can be going towards expanding our communities and stretching ourselves as loving, spiritual beings.

Before I paste my FB posting below, I want to note that I’m aware that Joan of Arc, had she been given the choice, may have chosen no gender and/or may have identified as a Butch-Woman. Personally I’m not invested in whether Joan was butch, trans or ftm. My concern is the lie that portrays a feminine maiden where a masculine warrior stood. Joan chose death over wearing female attire. Isn’t is crazy how easy it’s been to deny who Joan was. How many other masculine women do you think were wiped out of history? And, where are all those visible, masculine woman-sexed images now? Where are the images of all those female/feminine-hearted, non-make-up wearing, hard-working women we know are part of the backbone of this country and world? Why do some feel threatened or amused when a man puts on a dress?

“Once a gay friend asked me if I was carrying a man’s wallet. I told him no, the wallet was mine.” Fresh! White, 1989

#tie #Gender #Androgyny – Most of us come into this world with particular sets of reproductive organs that are used to identify us as woman or man. Many of us are then given gender identities that generally require us to play roles. The role we are given doesn’t always have a lot to do with who we are as human beings. W…e are bigger than male or female. History and current day show us that women can be great warriors and men great nurses. And still we buy into the ideas of how we are “supposed” to be-have. We as a society have been brain washed. Even as we witness others and experience ourselves beyond gender, we can’t accept it. A baby, just a few months old, was recently killed for not “acting” male enough.

The most popular transgender male, Joan of Arc, can be viewed in paintings all over the world as a feminine maiden. Joan was a warrior and leader of men, males and the women and females who would fight. This guy Joan, chose DEATH over not wearing the clothes that were gender-required. Joan chose the clothes that helped express who she/he was in the world and was killed for it. The world denies Joan’s masculinity and transgenderism. Joan d’Arc was not a man, and was male. Joan’s sex was woman (as far as we know) and gender was male.

Since CA’s Prop 8, there have been too many murders and suicides of youth who were queer (LBGTQI) or perceived to be. How many more of our youths will die by their own hands or others before we start behaving like it’s 2010 and start seeing ourselves as individual human beings who need each other to survive? And you shouldn’t have to choose a gender or identity in order to be seen as Full Human.
It’s okay to be confused, it’s not okay to judge and hate.

No, I’m not preaching to the choir, I’m working on expressing myself peacefully so when I get to speak to the confused and/or haters it won’t be the first time I speak my mind out loud on this topic, in this particular way. Thank you for allowing me to breathe here.

Is there something you want to say out loud today?

Jianda Monique

For the past few months I’ve been posting my thoughts and feelings on my FB page. Coincidentally, Jen started doing the same. Some how we in our different ways and different words and at different times started speaking our truths – and people are listening.

Jen is a writer, workshop facilitator, performer, author, singer, poet, baker, cook, Gardner and so much more. She has helped people heal in her writing workshops and she has been healed by these people’s participation and courage. It made sense that she would write. But this posting is not about Jen or her organization or beautiful-soulful blog or about how I love to listen to her talk about her work, all-the-time or how much I love her.

My writing came out of strong aversion to stepping back into a den of gremlins. I was about to walk into a group of folks who honored deceit, silence, and hierarchy while nurturing racism and classism in the most blatant and insidious ways. And this posting is not about that…

Jen was posting her truth and I was posting mine and many folks were/are following us on FB. One of those folks is Jianda. She would “like”, comment and/or respond in some way to what we were saying. I totally appreciated it – I appreciated that my words were affecting someone enough that they would actually write something, or take the time to like something – which is a pretty open thing to do on FB.

At some point Jianda made a statement, or sent Jen or I a note; she said we were like the one-two punch on her wall (amongst many cool and wise folks I imagine). Not only did I think it was really cool of her to say that, I honestly didn’t realize it was happening. I rarely looked at Jen’s wall and although she sometimes looks at mine, we were not aware of how we might be looking to our mutual friends. I was glad for that new knowing about us.

Weeks, many weeks went by before I noticed that Jianda had a blog – http://jiandanet.wordpress.com/ And, so much more. This woman/diva/Femme Goddess is a poet, actress, singer, song writer, motivator artist, community builder, model, interviewer, activist and so much more has got it going on!! She’s “working it out” as Jen would say – and yes she certainly is!

Thanks Jianda for helping to create safety in the world for all of us to be ourselves, learn who we are and be openly loving while bringing our whole-selves into light. Thanks for being a my leader/follower & and peer and allowing me to be yours.

Check this out people, then go to her blog to learn more:

The Butterfly Circus

*Everyone needs someone who believes in them!* *A community can make a beautiful family!* *We are all bigger and greater than we know!* *Someone needs you to really see and acknowledge them today.*

And so much more came to mind after seeing this fantastic film. I really appreciate when film makers use their resources to create more love and connection in the world. Enjoy!!

http://www.thedoorpost.com/hope/film/?film=4dd298f102c77b625cf37a9e7744ac68

Love is Love is Love and stories help!

Love is the absolute eliminator of all of our societal discretion’s. There is nothing better than having the “wrong people” fall in love to help create change and progress. And/or maybe it’s not just people. It can be a person falling in love with a mountain, stream or animal that would encourage them to change their life and document their story, which helps to change the lives and opinions of others as well.

“…normal has always felt like a lie to me, a too-tight sweater we force ourselves to wear. Normal has never been too kind to women, to children, or people of color, people mired in poverty, anyone different in any way. Normal is good for no one, really. It is a lie we all decide to believe—after even the most cursory look, no one is actually normal; it is a plastic bag we wrap around our own heads….” by Allison Cooper, her story on O – Falling in Love…: http://bit.ly/czj5BX