I did beat the game (many times, in fact), but I probably wouldn’t have found everything if it weren’t for friends, magazines, and strategy guides. But we all had that one friend who claimed to have found everything with no help. My friend received his copy of LoZ without a box or instruction book. He started it not knowing the controls, or even who this so-called “Zelda” was. He went in blind, but found every secret, every heart container, every item. He beat the game without even knowing what the quest was. …Or so he claimed. He was also a pathological liar, so I’ll never know for sure.
Now I’m going to clumsily attempt to relate this to trans issues. When my egg cracked in 2005, most people didn't even know the word "transgender". If trans people were mentioned on TV, they were usually called transexuals, assuming the show was even being kind. I never connected with "those people" when I was younger, because TV constantly portrayed them as perverts.
When I had dysphoric thoughts as a child, I never thought to connect them to the "sickos" I saw on talk shows and sitcoms. Those people were just mentally ill, or so I thought. So in 2005, when the culmination of all my experiences suddenly coalesced into a crystal clear epiphany, I found myself stumbling in the dark. Like my friend playing Legend of Zelda, I was had no idea where I was going or what I was looking for.
Today people accuse trans children of being brainwashed by liberal society (which is a really ignorant thing to say), but fifteen years ago trans people weren't all over the news like they are now. I had to actively seek out information on what was wrong with me.
In some ways I'm jealous of trans kids today, because they have access to a lot of information that I didn't. I have no doubt that if I'd had access to the internet when I was a child, I would have known I was trans well before puberty. But at the same time, I'm almost glad I didn't know. I know my parents - they wouldn't have even considered letting me take steps in that direction.
A lot of people wish they could go back to being a kid with the knowledge the have now, but have you ever considered how much of a prison that would be? Sure, you might get rich from buying stocks or placing sports bets or whatever, but having to relive those years with an adult brain would be a nightmare. You couldn't tell anyone the truth, because they'd think you were crazy. You couldn't relate as well to your teenage friends, and you'd basically have to play a role 24/7 while you wait for your friends to mature. Maybe it's a small price to pay to pave your way to riches, but for me high school was a living Hell and I wouldn't want to relive it.
It would be even worse knowing I was transgender as a child, and knowing I'd still have to go through puberty. Puberty is a destructive force for trans children. It changes the body in irreversible ways, and makes later transitioning that much more difficult. I know, you're reading this and thinking, "Kids are too young to decide they're transgender," and maybe to some extent you're right. But that's the whole reason for puberty blockers. All they do is delay puberty until the child is old enough to decide for themselves.
Look, scoff all you want. But this treatment saves lives. I was suicidal myself as a teen, and while I obviously never went through with it, I spent a lot of time on that edge. If I'd known I was trans at the time, and puberty blockers had been a thing, I might have had higher hopes for the future.
A couple of months ago a transgender child made headlines. Her mother is on her side, but her father doesn't believe it. The father has been lying to the media at every opportunity, like referring to her puberty blockers as "chemical castration" to make it sound more shocking. This is not surprising. In my experience, bigots don't care about facts. Or at least, they don't like having their beliefs challenged.
But seriously, try to think critically for a moment. It is hard as Hell for a full grown adult to qualify for transition surgeries. It requires a years in therapy, then a certain number of years living full-time as the new gender, and all kinds of authorizations. (Not to mention it's insanely expensive, and rarely covered by insurance.) And this is for a grown adult, who ought to be allowed to have a say in what happens to their own body. Do you really think they're frequently allowing gender surgery on kids?
I'm getting sick of seeing the same uninformed arguments over and over. I'm sick of seeing the same tired "attack helicopter" jokes. I'm sick of a certain BBC writer gaining fans as he attacks trans people with his bigoted opinions. I'm sick of people saying things like, "I'm not a bigot, I just believe in science." ...especially since the actual science supports trans people.
I'm sick of people saying "Yeah, well when I was a child, I wanted to be a fire engine." Sure, you saw a fire engine go by, and then you pretended to be a fire engine for the next hour. But the next day you pretended to be a ninja, and the following week you were Optimus Prime. When I saw the movie Condorman, I pretended I was Condorman for the rest of the day. And then I never thought of him again.
Nobody is suggesting putting a girl on testosterone because she's a tomboy. Nobody is suggesting giving a little boy surgery because he wanted to be Rey instead of Luke for Halloween one year. Attentive parents can tell the difference between a short term desire and a true aspect of the child's personality.
My brother wanted to be an artist as a child. He had other passing interests - I remember BB guns, weight lifting, and motorcycles - but these lasted a few weeks and were never seen again. He always went back to art. It was obvious from a very young age that he was an artist. And guess what? He grew up to be an artist. What. A. Shock.
I won't say I obviously wanted to be a girl, at least not in the same way my brother was obviously an artist. I will say that I pretended to be female characters as often as I could get away with it. But I learned early on that I was setting myself up for scorn, so I only picked female characters when playing with certain friends. Choosing my character was a pretty stressful experience if I didn't know my friend well.
I can also tell you I gave my mother enough clues that she could have added it together if she wasn't in denial. I remember many, many times when she berated me for wanting a girl toy, or for the feminine way I touched my face when I spoke, and so on. I won't say she was sexist. She was mainly worried that I would be bullied if I acted too feminine. But there were probably way more instances than even I remember, and I did learn to hide certain inclinations to avoid her complaints.
Once again, I know that wanting to play with Barbies and touching your face doesn't make you a girl. But that's just on top of everything else. If my mom had been more liberal, and trans information had been as prevalent as it is today, she might have put two and two together.
I've said dumb things in the past. Looking at some of my early trans blogs makes me cringe, but I'm keeping them up on the internet because learning is a journey. But I am sick of trans people having to be perfect in order to be accepted.
If a trans person says something untrue - whether on purpose or because they were uninformed - suddenly it's ammo against the trans community. There are bad people of every type - Black, white, male, female, old, young, cis, trans. Sometimes trans people do bad things (the Matrix sequels, for example). The president of this country can mock the disabled and brag about molesting women, but if a cis man pretends to be trans to commit a crime, suddenly all trans people are faking it.
I can promise you one thing - I am not perfect. But my flaws don't make me wrong about this. Protect your trans children. Listen to them. Don't let your idealized image of your child interfere with seeing who your child really is.
Nobody is trying to make your child trans. Believe me, the last thing any of us want is for someone who isn't trans to mistakenly transition. But if someone truly is trans, the earlier they find out, the better. Nobody is suggesting that underage people get genital surgery. But puberty blockers save lives. Period.
When I had dysphoric thoughts as a child, I never thought to connect them to the "sickos" I saw on talk shows and sitcoms. Those people were just mentally ill, or so I thought. So in 2005, when the culmination of all my experiences suddenly coalesced into a crystal clear epiphany, I found myself stumbling in the dark. Like my friend playing Legend of Zelda, I was had no idea where I was going or what I was looking for.
Today people accuse trans children of being brainwashed by liberal society (which is a really ignorant thing to say), but fifteen years ago trans people weren't all over the news like they are now. I had to actively seek out information on what was wrong with me.
In some ways I'm jealous of trans kids today, because they have access to a lot of information that I didn't. I have no doubt that if I'd had access to the internet when I was a child, I would have known I was trans well before puberty. But at the same time, I'm almost glad I didn't know. I know my parents - they wouldn't have even considered letting me take steps in that direction.
A lot of people wish they could go back to being a kid with the knowledge the have now, but have you ever considered how much of a prison that would be? Sure, you might get rich from buying stocks or placing sports bets or whatever, but having to relive those years with an adult brain would be a nightmare. You couldn't tell anyone the truth, because they'd think you were crazy. You couldn't relate as well to your teenage friends, and you'd basically have to play a role 24/7 while you wait for your friends to mature. Maybe it's a small price to pay to pave your way to riches, but for me high school was a living Hell and I wouldn't want to relive it.
It would be even worse knowing I was transgender as a child, and knowing I'd still have to go through puberty. Puberty is a destructive force for trans children. It changes the body in irreversible ways, and makes later transitioning that much more difficult. I know, you're reading this and thinking, "Kids are too young to decide they're transgender," and maybe to some extent you're right. But that's the whole reason for puberty blockers. All they do is delay puberty until the child is old enough to decide for themselves.
Look, scoff all you want. But this treatment saves lives. I was suicidal myself as a teen, and while I obviously never went through with it, I spent a lot of time on that edge. If I'd known I was trans at the time, and puberty blockers had been a thing, I might have had higher hopes for the future.
A couple of months ago a transgender child made headlines. Her mother is on her side, but her father doesn't believe it. The father has been lying to the media at every opportunity, like referring to her puberty blockers as "chemical castration" to make it sound more shocking. This is not surprising. In my experience, bigots don't care about facts. Or at least, they don't like having their beliefs challenged.
But seriously, try to think critically for a moment. It is hard as Hell for a full grown adult to qualify for transition surgeries. It requires a years in therapy, then a certain number of years living full-time as the new gender, and all kinds of authorizations. (Not to mention it's insanely expensive, and rarely covered by insurance.) And this is for a grown adult, who ought to be allowed to have a say in what happens to their own body. Do you really think they're frequently allowing gender surgery on kids?
I'm getting sick of seeing the same uninformed arguments over and over. I'm sick of seeing the same tired "attack helicopter" jokes. I'm sick of a certain BBC writer gaining fans as he attacks trans people with his bigoted opinions. I'm sick of people saying things like, "I'm not a bigot, I just believe in science." ...especially since the actual science supports trans people.
I'm sick of people saying "Yeah, well when I was a child, I wanted to be a fire engine." Sure, you saw a fire engine go by, and then you pretended to be a fire engine for the next hour. But the next day you pretended to be a ninja, and the following week you were Optimus Prime. When I saw the movie Condorman, I pretended I was Condorman for the rest of the day. And then I never thought of him again.
Nobody is suggesting putting a girl on testosterone because she's a tomboy. Nobody is suggesting giving a little boy surgery because he wanted to be Rey instead of Luke for Halloween one year. Attentive parents can tell the difference between a short term desire and a true aspect of the child's personality.
My brother wanted to be an artist as a child. He had other passing interests - I remember BB guns, weight lifting, and motorcycles - but these lasted a few weeks and were never seen again. He always went back to art. It was obvious from a very young age that he was an artist. And guess what? He grew up to be an artist. What. A. Shock.
I won't say I obviously wanted to be a girl, at least not in the same way my brother was obviously an artist. I will say that I pretended to be female characters as often as I could get away with it. But I learned early on that I was setting myself up for scorn, so I only picked female characters when playing with certain friends. Choosing my character was a pretty stressful experience if I didn't know my friend well.
I can also tell you I gave my mother enough clues that she could have added it together if she wasn't in denial. I remember many, many times when she berated me for wanting a girl toy, or for the feminine way I touched my face when I spoke, and so on. I won't say she was sexist. She was mainly worried that I would be bullied if I acted too feminine. But there were probably way more instances than even I remember, and I did learn to hide certain inclinations to avoid her complaints.
Once again, I know that wanting to play with Barbies and touching your face doesn't make you a girl. But that's just on top of everything else. If my mom had been more liberal, and trans information had been as prevalent as it is today, she might have put two and two together.
I've said dumb things in the past. Looking at some of my early trans blogs makes me cringe, but I'm keeping them up on the internet because learning is a journey. But I am sick of trans people having to be perfect in order to be accepted.
If a trans person says something untrue - whether on purpose or because they were uninformed - suddenly it's ammo against the trans community. There are bad people of every type - Black, white, male, female, old, young, cis, trans. Sometimes trans people do bad things (the Matrix sequels, for example). The president of this country can mock the disabled and brag about molesting women, but if a cis man pretends to be trans to commit a crime, suddenly all trans people are faking it.
I can promise you one thing - I am not perfect. But my flaws don't make me wrong about this. Protect your trans children. Listen to them. Don't let your idealized image of your child interfere with seeing who your child really is.
Nobody is trying to make your child trans. Believe me, the last thing any of us want is for someone who isn't trans to mistakenly transition. But if someone truly is trans, the earlier they find out, the better. Nobody is suggesting that underage people get genital surgery. But puberty blockers save lives. Period.
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