“Now, I think about warmth because I know cold. Now, I think about quiet because I know noise. That is waking. That is living.”

The tone of debate in our country seems to lean ever further toward pettiness and argument. It is more  important than ever that we continue to lean in the opposite  direction and facilitate open, honest and respectful conversation.

“Friendships, romances, careers, children, writing and creating all take effort, and when you are depressed, that energy isn’t there, and that effort just doesn’t feel worth it.”

“What would it be like to watch yourself die? To be at the bedside, holding your own hand for your final breath?”

“Years of telling myself, every day, that I was a failure. That what I’d given of myself had made no difference. I hadn’t realized how badly I needed those words: ‘Baby, it was enough.'”

Ask yourself, “Where is the fight?” It isn’t at the finish line. It is one step past the last.

“Ignorance must be met with teaching, not preaching. Your right may be different from my right.”

“We are not books, but we do have stories, and nothing ruins a story like certainty. I hope I am writing a good one.”

This past July 5 was my three-year “traniversary,” the anniversary of my coming out as transgender and beginning my transition. A day I’ve dubbed “Iden’s Day.”

“There will always be outstanding players, leaders in every field, and they are vital, but they are not so worthy of praise that we should devalue the contributions of the other team members.”