“You are who you are. No one can tell you who you are but you. Whoever you know yourself to be, you are right.”
—Maybe Burke
I didn’t grow up with trans joy. I grew up with longing, quiet adjustments, and learning how to make myself acceptable. I spent years thinking I was broken, desperately trying to fit into something that was never meant for me. I thought that was just life—fighting for every inch of belonging.
Then my daughter, Atticus, came into the world, whole and bright and unabashedly herself, an embodiment of absolute joy, proudly declaring, “I, Atticus” when asked if she was a girl or a boy.
She knew who she was and refused to let anyone tell her otherwise. For a while, I let myself hope that she wouldn’t have to learn the same survival skills I did; maybe she could just be.
My daughter deserves a world where she isn’t forced to fight so hard to exist: one where her joy is expected, nurtured, and uplifted; a world where trans joy is a certainty.
Trans joy is sacred: a radiant and unshakable force that refuses to be diminished, a testament to resilience, authenticity, and love. It is communal, a light passed from one to another, illuminating the path toward a liberation where we can simply be.
Holy in its honesty and wholeness, it offers a glimpse of our world as it should be. Not small, not an afterthought, not a reward for enduring suffering, trans joy is life itself. Bold, expansive proof that we are real; that we belong; that we have always been enough.
That world doesn’t exist yet—not the way it should. Until it does, I’ll make sure that Atticus never doubts her worth. I’ll show her that trans joy isn’t just possible, it’s powerful. It’s bigger than the struggle, louder than the hate, more enduring than fear. I’ll make sure she faces a future where she isn’t just fighting to exist but living fully, freely, and without apology.
In a world that so often seeks to erase, silence, or diminish trans lives, our joy is more than resistance, it is a defiant declaration, an absolute refusal to shrink, a spirited promise that trans folx won’t just survive, we will thrive!
Prayer
Spirit of Love, may we create a world where trans joy is abundant, expected, and celebrated, where trans kids, adults, and elders thrive in the fullness of who they are. Let this joy be our guide, our resistance, and our sacred promise to one another. Amen. Àse. Blessed Be.