As an artist, I like to notice the substance that creates a final piece of work. A table isn’t simply a table. It might be a wooden table. It might be a metal table. It might consist of multiple things like wood, metal and tile. It’s still a table, but the medium used to sculpt and build the table is still the foundation of the table. A table made out of wood will never be a metal table, anymore than an oil painting will ever be a watercolor.
Wooden tables need to be taken care of differently than metal tables. Different types of wood need to be treated differently from other types of wood. Wood is still wood. The base hasn’t changed. The appearance of the wood might be carved into a table, or maybe the wood from the tree, (We can all agree that wood comes from trees, right?) will be used as firewood. Whatever the purpose of the wood, it is still wood carved and manipulated into what is its intended purpose.
When I look at a crocheted or knitted blanket, or for that matter make one, I notice the stitches and recognize what stitches are used. When I paint a picture, I decide if it will be watercolor, acrylic, oil or something else. The stitches and type of paint I use matter for the desired result of my final outcome and product.
It is not offensive for me to choose to use a basketweave stitch over a granny square motif, and neither of these is better or worse than the other. They are stitches used to create something out of the yarn. The yarn is still yarn. Whether it is made into a blanket, purse, sweater, towel or anything else, everyone knows that a crocheted or knitted item is still made out of yarn. Whether the yarn is cotton, wool, nylon, polyester or something else, it is still yarn.
The same goes for a painting. Paintings are painted using paint. Wooden tables are made from wood. Electronics have chips and digital programming in them. The base of anything is still the base, no matter how we use it to create something else out of it.
Apparently we are not supposed to apply this same logic to human beings, because if we do we are offensive and biased against their identity. A human being is still a human being. A human being with xx chromosomes is still a female. A human being with xy chromosomes is still male. Science has advanced to the point where we can take hormones and other other chemicals to alter this. Science has advanced to the point where we can sculpt and carve human beings so they look like something else.
We can literally take a man and make him look like a woman. We can take a woman and make her look like a man. For that matter, if a person wants to look like a wolf, they can take certain medications to grow hair all over their bodies, and adjust their vocal chords so they can howl better. Surgeries are performed to sculpt and create the desired outcome in some cases.
We call it transgender when men change their appearance to become women, and women change their appearance to become men. I’m not sure what we call it when people choose to become wolves or anything else, but it certainly can be defined as some sort of transformation. Regardless of what someone looks like after transforming, they are still made from the substance they started with, and for the life of me I don’t know why this is offensive to acknowledge for anyone.
It is a lie to say a wooden table is made out of metal. It is a lie to say an oil painting is a watercolor. It is a lie to say a granny square is really a basketweave stitch. And it is a lie to say that a person with xy who transforms into a person who looks like someone with xx, or a wolf or anything else they want to turn into is no longer a person with xx or xy chromosomes. Chromosomes and dna cannot be changed in the transformation process.
I don’t understand how stating these truths can be offensive to anyone. There is no judgment about the transformation. There is simply a recognition of the foundation that it came from. No one is saying anyone is better or worse than anyone else. No one is even accusing anyone of anything. People in society are merely recognizing the substance, beyond the sculpted appearance.
That said, when it comes to the trans (anything) movement, it’s not my field of artistry or expertise. I have no desire to sculpt a man into a woman, a woman into a man, or a person into any sort of animal or inanimate object. Truth be told, I’ve often thought of myself in relation to nature, particularly trees. I’m sure if I identified enough to the point of seeking out transformation, I could find a doctor or scientist who could help me transform my toes and fingers, so they look green like leaves. It’s probably easier to use green nail polish, but there’s probably a cosmetic surgeon who would be willing to sculpt my fingers and toes so they are shaped more like leaves. And I could always dye my hair green and use various gel and other products to create branches. Then I could add hair attachments that make my hair look more like leaves. My body would be the the trunk. My base would still be a person, but yes, I could alter my appearance to look like a tree if I wanted to, and I could find and pay people who would help me do it.
Would people look at me differently? I suppose so. But if I’m comfortable enough in my decision, why should I care? I don’t need society to validate my desire to use my female human substance to look like a tree. I can look like whatever I want. No one needs to fight over this. No one needs to fight over anyone choosing to change their appearance, so that they look like someone or something else. And it’s okay to recognize that they are still made from the substance that they started with, be it xx or xy, this is what they used to alter their appearance into something else.
To be honest, my biggest thought on this is, “Who the hell cares?!” As long as they are still kind, decent and willing to play nice with others who are different from them, does it really matter what they look like? It’s as stupid as fighting because someone chooses to wear polka dots instead of plaid. Polka dots are not superior to plaid. Plaid is not superior to polka dots. People who fight over this crap are stupid in my opinion. They’ve gone off the freaking rails! They are forgetting that we can all get along, regardless of what we look like, and they are creating division and hate, where no division and hate should exist.
I will never be a tree, but I still love trees. I will never be a man, but I still love men who are kind, decent and willing to play nice with others. I will never be trans anything, but as long as those who are play nice with others and are kind and decent, I will love them for who they are. It’s really not rocket science to me. It’s about loving my neighbor as myself, and accepting people for who they are, because each of us is unique and special. We all deserve love, and to be treated with respect and dignity. We get to notice our differences, but not to hurt each other because of them. The goal should be to build each other up, not tear each other down. People are going to do what they are going to do either way, so why make it ugly and something to fight about? Why not embrace our differences with love, instead of labeling them and encouraging so much division and hate?
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Wishing you only good things! Thank you for reading my work here.
Teresa