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I have recently been thinking deeply about the way our society is towards our children regarding the LGBT community. atleast with my family and the neighbors around me. More often then not, I've gotten into a fight with someone, about letting someone be them selves, be they gay, transexual, bi, or straight. And more often than not, I get the urge to deck them when they get the smug look on their face when they think they've provided proof that I'm wrong.
Don't get me wrong now, I'm not a violent person, naturally, I'm very passive and strongly believe a person has a right to live as they feel they are. The fact I don't believe in a god, doesn't help my position much either, then the arguement turns in a way that I really hate going down. But The question I have is, why are people so deeply rooted to believe that they have to force their child to be "normal" When there is no sense of normalcy anymore.
I recently had the same argument with my old man (Whom I refuse to call my dad anymore) And he compaired people to animals, saying same sex animals don't have sex. While I proved him wrong, he simply dismissed the proof saying it was edited to look like that, or it's not real, or some other thing to say I'm wrong.
While Society is turning to accept us more and more, there are still those certain people that can hurt us deeply. Which really makes us feel alone. And it makes us choose, whose happiness do we save? Our own? or the people around us, who's known us for so long? It's times like that, that make me feel alone, even when theres thousands of people around me, It's like they aren't even there.
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Tough choice
But keep in mind that caring must be a two way street. I will give the respect and caring and bend over backwards to family who gives the same. Depending how intense your need within yourself, it may or may not such a compromise can be made.
In the end for me was what I had to do to keep myself sane and alive and, if possible, make me happy.
Kim
Yeah, it sucks but...
but poeple like you having the courage to stand up for GLBT people let's others know their bigotry isn't welcome everywhere. And, I'm sure you even convince some people. Maybe not the person you are arguing with, but someone else who might be listening. The increasing, though incomplete, acceptance we now enjoy has been the result of changing minds one at a time. Hopefully you are lucky enough to have someone tell you that you changed their mind sometime soon. That happened to me a couple of months ago at a townhall meeting where I was asked by my state senator to explain why marriage equality is so important. Keep fighting the good fight with kind words and intentions, Kitten! You're not alone in the fight (or in the frustration at times)!
As for the religious types, I like to remind them that in this country people are free to choose their own religion or none at all. If they would like to criticize people from their religious community for not following their rules they can do so. However, they should not expect people not in their religious community to follow their rules, as I wouldn't expect them to follow the rules of my faith community.
Let he who is without sin...
Even though I am a devout Christian, I have tried to abide by two things that are taught in the New Testament.
1) Do unto others as you would have done unto you
and
2) He who is without sin be the one to cast the first stone
I am sad and disheartened when I hear other so-call christians take such bigoted and hateful roles. They might as well bring out the torches and pitchforks.
Most of the time it's fear that pushes these people to say and do things. Sometimes it's fear their owns beliefs are in question. Sometimes it's pure mule-headed stubborness.
All I can say is, use this as a catalyst to prove them wrong by your words and actions. Find someone or lots of someones who will support you and love you for you, but don't shut the door completely on your former friends and family. You never know when the day will come that one of them might turn their heart and accept you for who you are. I went through something similar, but from the former friend/family member's side.
Hope this helps,
Paula Young
Paula Young
A life lived in fear is a life half-lived
Excellent points
In the same light, from the other perspective, most folks here would have given up on me as I was just a couple of years ago. I was almost like the Apostle Paul...I didn't cast any stones, but I 'held the coats' of those who did in a sense. After my own Damascus Road experience, I've found out so much about what I used to believe and think and cherish as true just isn't as solid as I thought. People whom I might have avoided or condemned in the past are held as some of my closest friends, both here and elsewhere. In short, I was wrong.
We hold on to what we know to be true or believe as such. As has been said here, this changes one heart at a time. Slogans didn't work to convince me I was wrong any more than they did to convince me I was right. It was in my own self-discovery, fueled by meeting and coming to know others like those of us here that I realized I was entirely wrong. I expect my journey will uncover even more about me that I didn't know and about you and others as well. Hopefully I'll be as open to receive correction and become even more willing to change and grow. I am glad that I lived long enough to change my mind and my heart. I hope I am a better person for it. Thanks. Andrea
She was born for all the wrong reasons but grew up for all the right ones.
Con grande amore e di affetto, Andrea Lena
Love, Andrea Lena
Dear Mom, We are all on the
Dear Mom,
We are all on the road or else we remain the same. I know that my road has been interesting and full of discoveries for sure. It is difficult to go through like with at least kicking a stone (if not casting it) and it's the memories of those stones that haunt us forever. They become a part of the new us that will warn us when we begin to think that some new, or known person should be stoned. I have learned to cherish these mojments of 'OMG! I did that?' and savor the lessons took away with me. We can't undo what we might have done to those who are no longer around, the trick is to attempt to undo that which we've done while they're still with us.
Your Loving, Hugging Brat
I don't like casting stones.
I don't like casting stones. as such I tend to treat others, how I want to be treated. with kindness. I always have from a little kid. I hated to be alone, and figured out that kindness to others will bring friends who I can enjoy. From there, I started to learn about the LGBT community around middle-school, high-school, when hormones started taking effect on people. But I don't know if my family will keep contact for too much longer. The only immediate family member that wasn't willing to cast me out to sea for wanting to live as a girl, was my mother, but as of march 15th she's no longer of this earth. I got friends who support me, but my family does not.
I used to be broken, I used to be lost. Unsure of what I was, until he found me...
Never be afraid to push yourself to new limits. While you might not see the path, you will be amazed at what you can achieve.
Hi Kitten, you are here and that is a plus!
Huggles Kitten, be true to yourself first!
Angel
"Be Your-Self, So Easy to Say, So Hard to Live!"
"Be Your-Self, So Easy to Say, So Hard to Live!"