I Was Promised a Pony!

[Shana A]

Catherine Oliver
Genderqueer activist, freelance writer, and publisher, 'Just a Bit Radical' magazine

I Was Promised a Pony!
Posted: 04/19/2012 11:02 am

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/catherine-oliver/i-was-promised-a-pony_1_b_1418570.html

I always knew I wasn't like others. I didn't want a boyfriend, and I wore clothes that the other girls called "boy's clothes," all the time. I played in the mud, ran after soccer balls, and climbed trees. "Tomboy," they said. I knew I liked girls, and I swore that if I did enough wishing, I'd wake up and just be a boy already. I knew I preferred boy's clothes, and I kissed my first girl that summer. Why did I always wake up wishing I had a different body? Why didn't I like what I saw in the mirror?

Luckily for me, I soon got my answer. My school had a group of amazing people come speak to us about gender and sexuality. They told us about things like being genderqueer (I almost fell out of my chair... they were talking about me!) and transgender, and that it was OK to be these things, that it was OK to feel confused, and that no matter what, we were still loved and accepted. It was the best I'd felt in years.

I still dress in masculine clothes. However, sometimes I feel like putting on a dress, and I do. The best part about gender fluidity is that there is no right or wrong.