2.0 Said So

“ I have no fear of losing you, for you aren’t an object of my property, or anyone else’s. I love you as you are, without attachment, without fears, without conditions, without egoism, trying not to absorb you. I love you freely because I love your freedom, as well as mine.

“ I say that intentionally.
I am not a lesbian. Not bi. Not straight. Not pan. Not gay.
I am queer. Intentionally. I intentionally use this term although others may apply.
Because being queer is political. It is fucking shit up. It is reconstructing broken elements. It is loving multiple sexes and genders and expressions, alone and simultaneously.
When I fuck my partner it is queer. When I am fucked it is queer. When I fuck myself it is queer.
My dress is just as queer as my combat boots.
I am always queer. Intentionally.

“ Instead of saying “I don’t have time” try saying “it’s not a priority,” and see how that feels. Often, that’s a perfectly adequate explanation. I have time to iron my sheets, I just don’t want to. But other things are harder. Try it: “I’m not going to edit your résumé, sweetie, because it’s not a priority.” “I don’t go to the doctor because my health is not a priority.” If these phrases don’t sit well, that’s the point. Changing our language reminds us that time is a choice. If we don’t like how we’re spending an hour, we can choose differently.

“

‎”as a queer Black feminist, the adventure of loving myself and the transformative journey of loving other Black women are intricately tied together. so I identify as queer, not only because my romantic love exceeds the bounds and norms of heterosexuality, but also specifically because I center all forms of my love on Black women and radiate to the rest of the world from there. this is a queer thing in our society because loving Black women is not the norm in our contemporary society. it is radical for us to love ourselves and each other as Black women, and it challenges the norms of our culture. so my queerness lives in the way I love my mother, my sisters, my community AND my romantic partner.”

: alexis pauline gumbs

“ If you’re not lost, you’re at a place that somebody has already found. If you’re comfortable or familiar, you’re in mapped territory. If you feel like you know where you’re at, somebody’s already done it. So if you want to create something new, you need to get completely lost.

“ As you start on the way, the way appears.

“ I will not be “famous,” “great.” I will go on adventuring, changing, opening my mind and my eyes, refusing to be stamped and stereotyped. The thing is to free one’s self: to let it find its dimensions, not be impeded.