Woe Is Not Me

All the time I hear complaints such as “God doesn’t exist- I wouldn’t have been put in this body otherwise” or “God must have been sleeping on watch when I was made because He got it all wrong.” I disagree with both sentiments. I believe that God does exist and that She didn’t get it all wrong. At the same time, I want to clarify that I also don’t agree with political views that “our adversity makes us stronger and so without these struggles we would be less than who we are today.” 

I think those viewpoints are a wonderful way of exempting the speakers from examining what is really going on and from having a much needed conversation. This is further reinforced for me in that, void of the struggle of being trans, there is always some other dynamic by which we are being marginalized and thus challenged to step up and expand who we are.

I know right now some of you are probably thinking, “but what about the most waspy republicans in our country- how are they being marginalized since they aren’t on  most of the spectrums? First off, don’t think for a second that republicans, wasps, or even waspy republicans don’t fit  into the queer spectrum. Second, they are republican wasps and with their leader (G.W. Bush) at an all time low in public approval ratings, they clearly aren’t the majority (no matter how loudly they proclaim that they are). They know this- that’s why they fight so hard to do what they do. No one has it completely made. Privilege works well for many but not perfectly, not even just for a few. 

So, if God didn’t get it all wrong, and we’ve all been put where we were supposed to be and in the bodies we were supposed to have been given, what does that mean? Should we just accept it all and complacently live out our time? NO! I’ve always believed that life is what you make of it (and no, that isn’t the same sentiment as the “American Dream”- some things ARE out of reach for most people no matter how hard they try, it’s just the way the system is set up). Your outlook on life makes the difference in how you experience that life. If everything appears to be doom and gloom then all you will get is hardships. If you can acknowledge the sun shining every now and then, you’ll get some good times too. 

Not to get religious here, but the Bible does speak about knocking and the door will be opened, ask and it shall be given. Those verses don’t speak specifically to salvation. They also speak to your lot in life. So, take your experience and let it be a guide for shaping your future, rather than letting your past shape you. Change your body if it doesn’t suit you.  The same holds true for the system that clearly doesn't work for so many. If we want it to work for us we have to change it- not try to join it. Resistance, whether just in our own bodies or against "the man" is one step forward. Make things work for you because it doesn't "all come with good time". You have to go get it!