what does it mean to “pass”? “pass” as if you are pretending and aren’t actually are. as if all that you are remains encased in your physical form. the concept of the “human” is so malleable that some are capable of viewing others as less human, recategorizing them as beasts, but simultaneously are unable to stretch their definitions of words - man, woman, etc. the dictionary has become bible. semantics has become a field in which everyone is an expert when a trans person parts their lips to introduce themself.
technicalities, qualifying words riddle legislation to tell me what i am. what i am is a woman - girl, angel, female. a brow bone or a voice below 165 hertz does not define this. even still, the pressure to appear “unclockable” persists. this pressure exists not as an innate sense of being beneath other women but a desire to fall within the hegemonic standard of beauty. a desire to exude whimsy, starlight, and sweetness. all of the things that make femininity alluring.
but we must not forget the magic from which our souls are sewn. the beauty that grows from our hearts and extends toward the darkest depths of the earth. the garden we grow and continue to keep alive and breathing. in the minds of every trans angel lies a vision a cis person is incapable of seeing. a perception of reality beyond their wildest imagination. to be trans is to live in resistance, to withstand the constant storm, to remain steadfast in tragedy, to learn to cradle and console your own weeping heart. but do not live in fear, darling. your heart will find the strength to stop weeping soon.
Yours,
V. Estrella 2/18/25