Presents

A Webzine Created and Edited by

Number 9

Table of Contents

"Where dreams are the stuff reality is made of"

• Explorations, an editorial
• Melanie's Transition Diary continues
• Sweeping Back the Beach: a poem/essay
• The Paradox the Lurks the Lochs: an original poem

Explorations

by , Editor

An excerpt from a letter I wrote in reply to one of our readers:

When I started the Gender Conference on AOL [later renamed the Transgender Community Forum], it was because at the time there were only erotic public rooms available to TG people. Now, I get as erotic as the next woman, but that is only a part of anyone's life. Transition for the TS and coping for the TV are not erotic endeavors. They are serious, deep, and gentle emotional experiences that are so fragile they can break with the slightest crudity or lack of compassion.

It seemed to me that a safe haven was needed as a growth medium to nurture evolving personalities. That is what I have worked to develop in the Gender Conference. And more than that, through The Subversive and our Email network, a whole family of supporting friends is available.

As for me, I don't go to my local support group meetings any more. I have not gotten anything from them in a long time, and can no longer offer much, since they might as well have a genetic female come in and talk to them about the good life. That is one reason I lurk in the shadows a bit more than I used to in the Gender Conference: the people who can best help each of us, are those who are just ahead of where we are in our own development. They are far enough ahead to offer guidance, but not so far away as to be unrelated.

So, I just fuel the infrastructure and keep the safe haven alive and well. The rest is up to our members themselves. And the only dues to be paid is that each of us who is benefiting from those a step ahead, should take the time to help those a step behind.

In the Subversive, my own interests are evolving more into a feminist mold. But that is in addition to all the fine contribution of our readers. You see, the point is not to change the nature of The Subversive by replacing old directions for new, but to add new natures to it, side by side with the old. So, this allows me to grow, while keeping the mechanism running to support even the novice who is starting out. The farther we range, the more people we can reach, the more we can support. And by increasing the spectrum of our members, we cannot help but foster understanding and tolerance across an ever-growing range of human souls.

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May you never find occasion to say, "If only....."

The Subversive #9

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