I am a cancer stellium, which inherently leaves me with some natural superpowers one might say… My solar plexus has always been led by the moonlight and my third eye has perpetually had impressive peripheral vision. I am wildly aware that we are made of water and are what many consider a small, personal, cosmic universe. The internet has completely devastated the reputation of empaths, but I swear to goodness that I can feel when someone has a toothache in Peru in the back of my head.
With all these things in mind, I have always wished to find a internal balance that not only essentializes the romanticism of living, life, and love but that also acknowledges the inequities most of the global population faces. It is my duty to acknowledge that a lot of woman-identifying individuals don’t have the resources, time, space, or ability to explore the romanticism of life. However, maybe I can offer solutions that are sustainable, obtainable, and of sound advice.
As I previously embodied a mindset that kept me prisoner of my own circumstances, it is also important to me to recognize how some ones’ intersections of identity may be presented by society with sizable roadblocks. Equipped with the understanding of that being just what they are, roadblocks, that can be easily navigated by forging your own path, I am here to offer a path-forward that is defined by accessibility, individuality, authenticity, and love. This is the mindset that has been a driving force in my life for the last half of a decade and I no longer desire to gatekeep my secrets.
Not to get personal, but…
“If I didn't define myself for myself, I would be crunched into other people's fantasies for me and eaten alive.”
— Audre Lorde
Where does she get it?
I’ve always been drawn to historical feminine iconography: Venus (every version of her), the triple Goddess, Bratz Dolls, American and British pop culture icons, faeries, Sailor Moon... you name her, I knew her and was obsessed (thank you, Pisces moon for the supernatural power to embody every character I’ve ever encountered). My mom even painted little faeries, dancing on rainbows that circled my room in first grade. I find it powerful to embrace my femininity and follow a path forged by Audre Lorde’s theory of the erotic. Following your erotic is synonymous to finding power in expressions of authenticity and being the object of your own desire. It is along my journey categorized by adversity where I have discovered that authenticity is essential to an individuals mental, spiritual, and physical longevity.
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I will first begin by presenting myself as an emergent strategist. This is not something I learned but something feel as though I am by nature. I’ve never found myself to have a deliberate plan and habitually adapting to my circumstances with as much grace as possible. I believe this has posed me with a unique edge and comfortability when it come to practicing emergent strategy. But that certainly doesn’t mean you can’t learn yourself! What is emergent strategy? Well, it is kind of just… that. It is an unplanned response to changing circumstances. For example: NyQuil advertising as a nighttime cold medicine due to it’s drowsy side affects. The conception and success of the underground railroad is a more adequate example of an emergent strategy.
I would also consider myself a decolonial feminist. Decolonial is an umbrella term according to my index. Presented by the education offered by the fine liberal arts establishment I am lucky enough to be enrolled in, I have began to follow a number of decolonial practices that serve as catalysts for my advocacy. I reject all institutions that reinforce supremacy based on race, sex or gender, religion, physical ability, or any other type of organization that has been written by colonial forces. Publishing perspectives on the detriments of the globalization of our consumption, making visual art that celebrates human life in it’s organic form, and picking up trash next to waterways are just a few examples of my regular decolonial practices.
Ecofeminist is the first label I ever gave myself (aside from “grungy faerie” when I was personally redefining naive). The term “global ecofeminist” now resonates more, but my advocacy was conceived in the bandaged and bruised hands of garment workers in Bangladesh. I truly believe that colonial domination over nature is mirrored in the same societal domination of women, people of color, disabled beings, queer folx, and any other denomination of marginalized groups that is exerted by colonial forces. Our global system relies on this domination to create, grow, harvest, and consume.
