CELEBRATE ME HOME...

The reason that I called this “Man.Kind,” with a period both separating, and connecting, Man+Kind is that it reflects so much about how rarely the notion of "kindness" is rarely at the top of the lists of attributes when thinking of men.  As a quality to be highly valued.  I wonder if it is less about being an aspirational quality, or is it people not thinking of kindness as relates to men, or men not thought of as being kind?  Is kindness thought of as feminine?  Gentle, kind, sweet, soft, SENSITIVE, SENSUAL…are those really female?  In Italian or French or Spanish, are those words F or M?  Anyone would think those are words that are feminine in nature, and I want to be ALL of them, in addition to whatever positive qualities are thought of as being "masculine."  The Dalai Lama.  Thich Nhat Hanh.  These are "real men," all male, in my opinion.  We all have the feminine, we all have the masculine within us.  How do we combine those parts of ourselves, to feel full…to not hide out from who we are?  I love language, I love words, I cherish opportunities to find a perfect word so that an emotion, a feeling, a thought gets communicated.  And language can be so limiting at the same time.  For us to live congruent lives, fully embodied and joyful, I believe we need to acknowledge and EMBRACE all sides of ourselves.  It was always easier for me growing up to honor my "feminine" (it was not about being straight or gay) because I saw that women had "the" power and I looked at men as either being somewhat "weaker" (how I viewed my Dad) or the kind of testosterone-infused maleness that never resonated.  I grew up as the "sensitive guy" for whatever that meant.  It was not until I connected with aspects of being a man in these recent years of my journey that I was able to hold all of those parts together.  Whether I was being called a Lesbian in a Man's Body or a Man with a Period, I am good with it all.  And while I wondered for so many years what, if anything, my Dad actually did teach me - especially about "being a man" - I look at him today and see that his kindness, his softness, even what some may say is his "weakness" are qualities that I took on my osmosis, and am proud that I have.  I don't want to deny any of the light, or the shadows.  Embrace the fullness of our richness, our individual tapestries.  Each of our unique alchemies and stews.  Celebrate me, and all of us, home, in who we are.