Dear Anita

People tend to be prejudiced or discriminate against different races, ethnicities or genders when they don’t understand things from their perspective and it sometimes comes from roots of fear. One factor of prejudice and discrimination is power, people who often are powerful might fear someone taking their status so they try to belittle people to assure a more authoritative role. I feel this happens in dictatorships and totalitarian regimes. The people in power are fearful that the people they rule might overpower them so they take away their access to media (or they heavily censor their media). By invoking fear in people, those in power will keep them in tune following the rules set for them. I’ve recently been reading the news about the protests in China and a journalist was captured and beaten. People were tired of being restricted in their travels as the government tried to stop covid spreads. They were protesting about President Xi Jinping isolating them and not allowing them freedom to explore the outside world. President Xi Jinping holds total power in China and there’s security cameras watching citizens who try to defame China’s President and if they are serious enough then the government locks them away. When one person holds all the power in a country, they can make laws and regulations and others are in the minority.

The minorities are often small groups within a nation or they don’t have as much power as the person in charge so they’re often hurt and discriminated against. Media and news play a role in making discrimination more prominent too. Every time there’s a news about a black person killing someone it’s often the head of the news. The media can be selective about what order they feature stories in which makes them stick in people’s minds longer and leads to more fear and racism against blacks. However, overall blacks and other races have relatively equal crime rates when comparing things worldwide.

I feel like discrimination and prejudice comes from what people are taught to believe by the media, how they grew up or corrupt leaders. There’s social discrimination too in the workplace where women earn less than men and they are more likely to be harassed in the workplace.

I feel a lot of the discrimination and prejudice comes from not understanding different perspectives and cultures which is why having social studies in middle schools into college can be helpful teaching people about geography and different cultures.

*** typo fix ***I was thinking about Jenny in Forrest Gump when I wrote about the feather being soft and delicate. Yet, feathers help a bird fly, and keeps them warm. Jenny was hurt by her father and very angry at him for hurting her and Forrest understood when he said “sometimes there just aren’t enough rocks ” when Jenny is “throwing” rocks at her childhood home because it reminds her of her father’s abuse

https://photos.app.goo.gl/PEbwRgxzG9qWWHn77

mochitea and pringle are soulmates

sometimes mice really connect with each other and there’s soulmates. they play together, rest together, exercise together and snuggle together. they look out for each other and happily squeak. if one of them loses the other then they’ll be sad.

if i take mochitea out for a walk and don’t bring pringle (because pringle might be sleeping), mochitea gets upset and starts looking for pringle

and pringle does the same when mochitea isn’t around

A soulmate for people is a person that uplifts our soul helping us grow and heal. Mice have soulmates that teach them love and compassion and people do to.

Dear Anita

Of Mice and Men was quite sad 😔 Lenny Smalls had a big heart, he loved soft things because they gave him comfort. He wished he could touch soft things but he didn’t know how to take care of them so he ended up hurting them. Mice are small and Lenny Smalls name “Lenny Smalls” seems to signify that Lenny has a caring heart for small and soft things but he unintentionally hurts them. I feel like men need social support much like mice to help them with their mental health. Lenny probably felt small and isolated because everyone at the farm had more intelligence than he did.

Mice form bonds with other mice and they’ll play, eat and snuggle together. A mouse that’s kept alone without someone to comfort them can become depressed. I feel like men who are supported and allowed to express their vulnerability, and build emotional support groups can improve their mental wellbeing too.

Hugs friend, thanks for your kind words on my poem.

Dear Anita

The Rainbow Wave represents progress in the world for lgbtq rights and equity.

Here’s a poem I wrote about trauma, healing and continuing to live

no matter how much hurt you face, know that you can never be replaced. the world would be a different place without you. you’re one of a kind, no one could fill your shoes. even with the traumas you’ve been dealt, and the doubts that you’ve felt you’re worth more than you know. because the sadness you’ve faced has helped you grow. although it is never easy to heal, it’s important to allow yourself to feel. you’ve got this and friends alongside to help you when you feel like you’re sinking below the tide. when tears and heartbreak comes along, here for you to encourage you to stay strong. you’re worth so much and have much to give, so it’s important that you continue to live. the world is beautiful because you’re in it, so don’t quit. let go of things holding you back, and there’s nothing you lack. you may find, sometimes the doubts play tricks in your mind. And you question your worth and purpose but remember you’re always worth it. you don’t need to have all the answers, just give yourself a pat for making it this far and keep being who you are. because the world needs people like you to touch it with beauty and grace. so take it one step at a time without haste. healing little things, taking breaks, knowing i’ll be there when you are looking for someone who cares. if you ever feel lost in self, that’s okay friends will help chase the sadness away. And hold your heart as you heal and mend, reminding you that it’s never the end. you’ve got a beautiful story and opportunities ahead, so let go of fears and take the lead. you are more than enough and are loved and cherished for who you are and i know you’ll go far.

Dear Anita

Building things out of clay is lots of fun too. I loved my ceramics class sophomore year of high school. I still have my bowl I made out of clay with a snowman’s face. I love painting more than coloring because painting on canvas is less restrictive than coloring and more relaxing 😌 I feel like when I look at a blank canvas, I can paint nature scenes, flamingos and have more options in mixing colors. Art and building things shouldn’t have a gender attached to them because they’re fun destress activities for people. I was quite excited to hear Zooey Zephyr, was elected into House of representatives for Montana and she’s the first transgender person in Montana. She believes in spreading awareness and love for lgbtq people. Not doing conversion therapy for gay people or lesbians because that’s harmful and traumatic and supporting trans rights.  There was an 18% increase for lgbtq people on November 8th ballot compared to 2020.  Democratic James Roesener is the first transgender male that got elected into New Hampshire house of representatives.

I think that they might provide more awareness for the lgbtq community which is exciting.

The binary gender stereotypes hurt people and limit them. Men who are taught to repress their emotions have high rates of depression and suicide rates. I feel like having mental health in schools, teaching meditation and crafts can help people express their emotions. Letting men express their emotions is helpful. Women are more likely to kill themselves than men, but men are more likely to die from suicide attempts because society doesn’t give men ability to be creative and express their emotions. So having mental health can help reduce suicides and improve mental health.

I feel like for trans people they struggle to fit into society and sometimes they feel like they don’t belong which is why there 43% more likely to have suicide increases compared to other lgbtq people. But with more progressive people in legislature and some schools starting to incorporate psychology of gender courses and transgender support groups trans people are starting to gain more support in society. It’s important for trans people to know that not everyone will support them and that’s okay, there’s people out there for them and they deserve to be loved and appreciated regardless of what gender they identify as.

also, men’s clothing sweatpants has better pockets and more waistline elastic band flexibility. I feel like clothing sometimes hurts people because women have skinny jeans and women tend to develop eating disorders more than men. The transgender community also has higher risk of eating disorders, eating disorders are common between ages 18-25.

When shopping for clothes that align with their gender identity, trying things on when they can is helpful when picking clothes. Also, some transgender support groups have clothing drives that allow people to get clothes that can help then.

Dear Anita

I feel like I enjoy the model sets that children get like legos or building blocks. I enjoyed building towers and making fun cubes out of the small connection cubes. I feel you on that one when you talk about disassembling machines and repairing them, sometimes it’s hard to keep focused to put the parts back together. I enjoy taking apart toy cars and putting them back together but most of them were snap-on parts that were easy to assemble. I often got tired or frustrated if I couldn’t reassemble a machine that was complex back together after taking it apart. I feel like taking apart machines question is a bit vague because many people take apart things that can be considered machines regardless of gender. I have watched children take apart toy trucks that had snap-on pieces and put them back together or build things out of legos. I think maybe the question would be better worded “i enjoy taking apart machines from major appliances and technology pieces.”  That way it’s more specific. I feel like taking apart technology or appliance machines including cars and washing machines can be quite complex. I sometimes tend to get distracted because I can’t sit still for a long time trying to figure out how the appliances connect together. But I love being creative, and building things like crafting things with legos and putting pieces together to make fun car toys. Also, before the 1900s biological men tended to dominate the social sphere so men were professional bakers. I think in the 1920s there were new waves in the women’s movement and they began to start taking roles like baking on tv. Now it seems like baking and cooking is a typical 19th century women’s work. But I feel like cooking, being able to repair things, save money, work at a job making income are basic life skills that shouldn’t have gender attached to them. I think that gender is a spectrum and society tries to dictate what’s right for how people are born. But society tends to change with time because back then, pink was a darker color and used for men while blue was lighter color like the sky used for women and now it’s different. I feel like gender doesn’t have defined boundaries like society makes it into male and female but there’s other identities in between. There’s a spiritual belief that the soul has no gender and there’s a balance of the divine masculine and feminine in all of us. The divine masculine is powerful, will, control, action, logic, judging and the divine feminine is creative, nurturing, intuitive, empathetic, meditative. Both work together to create balance and make decisions and some people might have more masculine sides while some might have more feminine sides.

I feel like transgender people are people who transcend the binary stereotypes of society and they seek out their own identity and self-expression that makes them happy. There’s no right way to be trans, and exploring what makes a person happy is what’s important. I feel like the main question people wonder sometimes is how they know they’re trans. I feel like if the person is struggling with their gender identity to take time and reflect on themselves and do what they enjoy. Try new ways of expressing themselves like different styles of clothing or hair styles and find other people who have similar struggles. I feel that a person who identifies as trans will know if it feels right when they express themselves as the gender opposite of their biological sex. I think I fully realized that I was transgender when I read on the resources in college and took some time to reflect on myself. I had lgbtq support groups where I could express myself enjoying painting and other crafts in a relaxing environment. I realized that I really felt like I had discovered something amazing and felt happier being a guy. That’s when I realized that I was trans because I could see myself living as a guy and feeling happy. I feel like transgender people get quite caught up in trying to be one way or another because they want to be acknowledged as valid. The important thing is to strike a balance, do what makes the person happy and work on creating awareness in society about the person. The person might decide to use different pronouns like he/they for transmales or she/they for transfemales and see how it makes them feel. Also, starbucks and some places have people put their name along with their orders so the person might try a name they’ve been considering and see how it sounds when it’s being called out. It’s okay to feel unsure about things and question things as people learn things at different times and they grow at different paces. What’s important is for the person to trust their feelings, seek out resources and be kind to themselves as they work along things. Also, sometimes gender dysphoria can be intense for transgender people and there might be times when it seems overwhelming and the person might feel like they’re losing themselves and that’s okay. Don’t fight the feelings, breathe and acknowledge them, drink some water, take a wall, listen to some music, call a friend to talk to. people are there for them and they are not alone. it’s normal for transgender people to feel like they hate parts of their body or feel like they were born wrong, that’s okay. Remember to appreciate themselves for what they can do and to remind themselves that they are valid. Self-love can be hard, but practicing compassion and acknowledging feelings knowing that the person is valid can be helpful.

Hugs friend and blessings

Dear Anita

Sending you hugs. Hope T and their father find some good resources to help.

I feel like for the Gender Aptitude Test, I feel like option D. I have been enjoying what makes me happy, hiking out in nature. Learning life skills like cooking and car repairs. I feel like life skills like these shouldn’t have gender attached to them because they’re important for all to learn. I feel like I lean more toward the masculine side though. I feel comfortable dressing as a guy- short hair, darker, plain clothing, suits and ties. I loved the lgbtq community at my community college and the transcendence transgender group at stockton university. I feel like I’ve been presenting as a guy in my college years and been much happier. I struggled with myself and societal expectations of gender when first starting out but with therapy and taking time to rest in nature and meditation has helped me grow more in tune with myself. I feel more confident in my gender expression. I’m not trying to be strong and muscular like a stereotypical guy, I’m taking care of my health, working with a nutritionist and getting fit with yoga. I feel like when first starting out, transgender people try so hard to be a certain way because society tends to put lots of pressure on gender stereotypes. So it’s important to take care of yourself (advice for T) and not try to fit into a box. Men can cry, it’s healthy to express emotions. And they don’t have to be strong, and muscular they just need to be healthy. And remember that they are valid how they feel. It takes time to grow and learn how to express yourself (advice for T) and it’s okay to struggle at times. Take it a step at a time, be kind to yourself and remember that you’re loved and supported. Listen to your heart and do what makes you feel happy