End OF Year Salutatons

Another year has come and gone. What has happened cannot be changed. We can only move forward. Let us be thankful for the good things that have happened in our lives. Let us learn from our trials and struggles and seek solutions.

2011 was a good year for me. I found a nice place to live. I started writing poetry in earnest and now read at open mics throughout the city. Above all, I'm able to reflect on my life and concluded that I'm blessed.


HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Seasons Greettings

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

GENEVIEVE'S GEMS

A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.


~Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. (1841-1935)

A Light In The Sea of Darkness

I am a big fan of lighthouses. The one pictured above is about a mile from my home. It is the only remaining lighthouse in New York City. It was commissioned in 1921 along the Hudson River. When the George Washington Bridge was completed in 1931, the Little Red Lighthouse was decommissioned the following year. Today it is a landmark.
I'm sure that the light that beamed out on a dark, foggy night saved many a ship from a watery grave. Our lives as transgender people can be turbulent and troublesome at times. Confusion by others about us causes them to lash out at us without ever tring to know what we are about. Our own fears can hold us captive, which can result in self-loathing and ideation about suicide, alcohol and drug abuse, and numoerous other vices.
Then one day some thing or someone crosses out path which can steer us in the right direction. Like the light beam over a dark ocean, each event can help us see that we are not alone. We need not feel ashamed or guilty over who we are or how others perceive us.
The reason I wrote this post is that there may be somone who believes that they are alone and that no one understands. There ARE many of us who know what you are going through. Many of us have been there. During this holiday season just remember that there are people who do understand and care.

Contentment consist not in adding more fuel, but in taking away some fire.

~Thomas Fuller (1608-1661)

Hospitality

This time of year is a lonely time for many people. Suicide, alcohol and drug abuse, and despair are high during this time of year. In the LGBTQI community this is doubly so. Many are estranged from family and community because of who they are.

I have been quite a bit of my mom this year. She passed in 2001 but the lessons she thought me remind me that hospitality and kindness are in great demand. She would invite someone she knew would be alone over to her home. Mom would relate to me that the individual was grateful and appreciative that someone thought of them.

Hospitality is a virtue that is sometimes lacking in today’s society. We can become so wrapped up in ourselves that we neglect folks who need companionship. For the past decade and a half, I have used this season as a time of reflection. It doesn’t matter to me whether or not I receive a gift. Being alive is a gift.

Let’s remember the neighbor who is lonely. Let’s give a gift to a child who may not have anything for Christmas. Visit someone in the hospital or hospice. It can make a difference in having a Merry Christmas or another empty day.

Shifting Again

I have been dressing up quite a bit the past couple of weeks. I desire to dress up more now. My spouse has noticed and she is somewhat bothered by it. She wrote a poem about my desire to be a woman rather than a man. I understand how she feels. She fears that she is losing the male person that she married. I tell her that I’m the same person.

I’m not really surprised by her response because I thought that this day would come. Things were quiet for a while. I sense that another shift is coming. I guess the holiday season may have triggered it because there have been more opportunities to dress. Just the other day I saw a transgender woman as I was crossing the street. I have been out dressed sparingly in my new digs but that will change as of now.

Another area of my life that I have considered is a permanent name change. This still a long way off but it sure seems closer than I imagined. There’s an organization that specializes in the area so I’ll need to look into this.

My brother wants me to spend a weekend at his home upstate. I’ve never told him about my being transgender. I honestly have no desire to. I wonder how I’ll fare while at his place. I’ll probably be little nuts because I can’t dress.


A lot is happening in my life at the moment as you can see. I’m sure that by the end of the year it will be sorted out.

GENEVIEVE'S GEMS

He who is contented is rich.

~Lao Tzu

Thankful

Hi! I hope that your Thangsgiving was wonderful. The weather was warm and mild. I'm thankful for many things. Waking up in the morning. A roof over my head. Most of all, I'm thankful for the many people who have touched my life.

I'm mindful of those who are less fortunate because last year at this time I lived in a shelter. I appreciate the little things that happen in life yet I'm looking to make a difference in other people's lives.

During this personal time of reflection, I am thankful for so much.

Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse.

~Henry Van Dyke

HAPPY THANGSGIVING

Transgender DOR

Last night, I attended Transgender DOR ceremonies at the community center here. There were over 200 people present. A vigil was held where we all marched around the block. A few folks on the street asked what it was about.

There were speakers, words of encouragement , stories from the audience. I spoke for a couple of moments. I shared my story of transition and acceptance by family. I shared that I refuse to live in fear. I encouraged everyone to be themselves. I also read this poem that I wrote:
We are persecuted,
Yet we have perservered.
Our journey has been circuituous,
Yet we have always been.
Some have fallen,
Yet we are still standing.
My people, Arise!

I met a number folks afterwards. I shared my experiences with a lesbian couple who will be getting married. A gentleman hugged and thanked me for my testimony. This was the best TDOR event that I've been to. We paid homage to those who died this past year (221 trans people killed). It encourages me that we are moving forward. I'm happy that I participated.

TDOR

Tonight I will be attending Transgender Day of Rmembrance ceremony at the community center. I will be making a comment or two and perhaps read a poem. I find it more beneficial to encourage others because its greatly needed. I pray that others will be encouraged.

At the beginning of each year, we have conceptual meetings. How are we going to challenge ourselves this year? So we suggested a transsexual or transgender. And to be honest, I am shocked they let us do it.
~Jai Rodriquez

Transgender Day of Remembrance.

This Friday I will be attending a Transgender Day of Remembrance ceremony at the community center. I may speak and possibly read a poem. I attend every year to encourage those who may feel alone and defeated. It's important that I do attend.

GENEVIEVE'S GEMS

The simplification of life is one of the steps to inner peace. A persistent simplification will create an inner and outer well-being that places harmony in one's life.


~Peace Pilgrim

The Same Person

When I came out I told my spouse that I am the same person I always was. It took much time and effort but I believe that she understands this now. We've been married 31 years and I'm thankful for that. I may have changed in my gender identity but I have honored my marriage and always will.

Whenever I feel a change within I pray that it will help me to understand myself and encourage others in the process. Seeing others succeed is more important than anything that I face.

In For The Long Haul

I visited Occupy Wall Street yesterday. There were tents everywhere in this constricted area. There was a kitchen, library, tables of information, a media area, and other venues. I spoke with a few of the participants and learned much about their reasons for being there.

I came away with the opinion that these people are there for the long haul. There were mostly young people and I'm happy that their voices are being heard. I pray that they are not usurped by other groups and provocateurs which are just interested in their own agenda. I will be going back again very soon.

www.occupywallstreet.org
www.occupytogether.org

Recital; Fracking

I went to a piano recital on Wednesday and enjoyed it very much. Young people played pieces from Bach, Robert Schumann, and other notable composers of classical music.

I listened to all kinds of music growing up. I enjoyed listening to the soft and pleasant sounding music on occasion. My mother gave me the appreciation for many kinds of music.

I was unable to attend the meeting about fracking. I do follow it closely and have protested in the past about this matter. Nuclear energy is also another matter. People are trying to get Indian Point Nuclear Plant shut down here in New York. This plant is only 28 miles from where I live. We had a hurricane, an earthquake, and last weekend, a freak snowstorm. Coupled with the fact that the plant is sitting on a fault, there is a great potential for something similar to what happened in Japan.

GENEVIEVE'S GEMS

Nature chooses who will be transgender; individuals don't
choose this.

~Mercedes Ruehl

Piano Recital and Meeting About Fracking

I will be attending a piano recital with a friend today. I love classical music and I'm excited to go to this free event.

Tomorrow night, I will be attending a meeting about fracking. This is an issue that I'm very concerned about. I will be hooking up with a group regarding this. If fracking is allowed, all the water sheds here will be damaged. I protested in front of the governor's office a few weeks along with two or three hundered other protesters.