Let’s Transition to Azaleas Already!

I have just finished doing the dishes. My friend once said that doing the dishes was like an act of Zen for her, and so, I have just spent a moment in an act of Zen, though I do not always feel Zen when doing the dishes. This Blog entry is brought to you from a moment of Zen.

I am not entirely sure why I have been attempting to deliver to two entirely different and separate ontological experiences for my books Bodies in Transition and AZALEAS & Other Edible Flowers. I have come to realize that the world we live in will not allow a divorce of these experiences from each other. Whereas, while I am focused on delivering a promising book about Queer Joy, Love, and Resistance, the world is focused on dealing reminders of pain and suffering.

It is not that I do not think that there is not value in reflecting upon what odds one has surmounted. For example, I can narrate from a distance, though do still very much have the disruptive language of a survivor, real threats to the queer community. For example, there are real threats to the queer community like apex male predators from the military or other militia groups who might have been dis/honorably discharged and are in fact paramilitary groups from the government who invade the community and target women and trans people. I experienced these in both my lives in FL and TN.

Threats from paramilitia groups are pretty serious odds being stacked against you.

It’s not just that their physical capacity is different. It’s also their access to resources is greater. They also have technological advantages.

What survivors have in sharing their stories is the ability to identify active threats to the community and be prepared for the worst possible outcomes. They also have a way to map new ways to outsmart these predators.

You are welcome for my Ted Talk. Don’t ask me what I experienced in MN. I am not here to shame women.