Henley's Spontaneous Opinions

With Pride month right around the corner, I’ve been reflecting on the past year I’ve been out. I’ve lost some close friends & family members, I’ve had all the typical hate and discrimination thrown at me by total strangers, I’ve had a lot of times where I just wanted to go back to hiding myself. But I’ve actually gotten to a place where there is no going back. I don’t want to go back. It’s just as miserable to hide yourself as it is to deal with bigots. How have I gotten through this and to the point I am today? The answer is easy: a support system. The close friends & family I have that are loud about their love for me carry me through the days. Some of the most important people in my life are the real & true allies. I have a few in particular who have never wavered in their support for me over the past year. I feel safe with them. And this is one of my favorite loud & clear messages I’ve received from them: be you, do what you gotta do, we have your back.

   Every minority group of people who have to defend their way of life are constantly accused of lecturing others , bullying others..  when we feel we are responding to your initial bullying in you not accepting us, calling us groomers, etc.. all we're doing is trying to get people to understand us and leave us alone. Stop treating us like a problem. All of this will go away if you just accept that we are here and stop picking on us.   For a group that seems to obsess over fake news and what’s the truth or not, you sure do spread tons and tons of fake news about our community. 

 At one of the recent school board meetings, some people from the community stood up and said horrendous things about the LGBTQIA+ and our supposed agenda. In response, many Equity Buckfield members and friends either wrote speeches or were in attendance for the next school board meeting. Much to my dismay, the school board meeting was the same day that I was (finally!) having my sinus surgery, so I could not make it! So I wrote an email to the school board in advance. One of the board members ended up making a statement and referencing my email. She was brought to tears because she herself has LGBTQIA+ kids and found it upsetting.  Here is the email I wrote to them. To the School Board: I am a parent in the community. I opted to finish the year homeschooling, but we live right down the road and have the potential to be involved in a lot of things in the school system in the future. For this reason, I like to stay informed and watch as many school board meetings as possible. D...

me one year ago: agender? what's that, that sounds like me. but I'm not non-binary. me a few days later: maybe I'm non-binary, but I'm not transgender. me within a few months: okay, I'm transgender, but I'll probably never get chest surgery or go on testosterone.  present me: .... I'm 36 and spent 35 years of my life tirelessly trying to fit into the straight cis cube. That's not what shape I am (or want to be) or can be, so I never fit right. The acceptance that I never will, and don't have to, was the most freeing feeling ever.  I now go by Brax and my pronouns are they/them. Brax comes from the name my parents wanted to name me if I was assigned male at birth. Braxton because of all the false contractions (Braxton hicks) I tormented my poor mother with. This is the piece of information about me I chose to start with because I feel like its an important part of my identity right now. I know its not the only important or interesting thing about me, ...