Launch

So, I did it. I launched this site. I hope you have found your way here because you are interested in or searching for a philosophically minded source for thinking about what it means to be transgender and to make the most of that experience.

When I first began to understand that I am transgender, I thought about gender a lot. A lot. Now, as the evolution continues, I think less about gender per se and more about how to maintain a dynamic equilibrium, as a whole human. How do I take this remarkable new energy and channel it? How do I maintain my optimism through the natural highs and lows of life’s experience, that can be all the more challenging when you are dealing with dysphoria?

Here’s one thing that occurred to me, yesterday, as I was walking along West Cliff Drive, taking in the first real sun in days. I realized I was smiling. And I really paid attention to how that smiling made me feel. It was like a state of grace. I felt free from worry and I felt the force of my spirit.

Think “fake it till you make it.” William James believed that habit has a powerful effect on our experience. And these habits are, at their root, related to the beliefs we hold. For James, beliefs always inform action. Yet, any action can become habit. Think of this as a sort of closed feedback loop we create. Beliefs lead to our experience–Seth would say “creates” our experience–and the experience reaffirms the validity of our beliefs. I believe I am a victim of circumstance, and so, my experience bears this out. So much so, the belief and action form a solid energy loop of self-confirming experience. If this is the case, we would want to encourage, grow, and focus on positive and advantageous beliefs.

The fact of action and the functional truth that we can change our action to change our experience is really “fake it till you make it.” “Faking” it means to change one’s actions consciously, acting on a belief that isn’t firmly anchored in experience. Through “acting as if” what we want is true, we break the feedback loop and loosen up our beliefs so we can supplant them with beliefs that are more advantageous. William James, in his pragmatic philosophy, held that to evaluate our beliefs, we only need to look at the effects of these beliefs. Are the results what you want? Are the beliefs to which you are habituated, producing the experience you want? Pragmatically speaking, are they working for you?

So, what does this have to do with smiling? Think about it: smiling makes us feel good, it makes us feel happy, buoyant, and content. So smile. Make it a mindful practice. When you catch yourself squinching your face down, relax, and smile. I swear, the practice of smiling has helped me manifest a happier self. Okay, so part of it comes from living in alignment with my truth. I hope you are living in alignment with yours. From that truth springs all joy and creativity. Still, sometimes we get down, and smiling as a practice will help create and sustain the belief you are happy, and in creating that belief, you will draw the kinds of experiences to yourself that comes with happiness.

By the way, smiling lifts the face and makes us look more feminine. I suppose that is reason enough to practice. Stay safe. Be true.

Kay out