[Kobi]

June,

Thanks. I am feeling heard and this is good. I still dont get some stuff but thats cool too. Am trying to be open minded and absorb what I can, filter things thru my own prejudices, preferences, and beliefs.

AARP says I need to do mentality tasks to starve off dementia. Today was good for a few more years. LOL.

Originally Posted by June

Hi, Kobi --

I wanted to say this out loud to you, and to everyone who is participating so thoughtfully and being patient with each other even though this is a frustrating and very difficult topic.

I *know* you. And when I say that, I mean, I know (and love) many women like you. Women who have spent decades fighting for a place at the table, in the Boardroom, in the bedroom. Women who gave up a lot so that in my middle 30's, I could waltz out into the world as a Lesbian/Femme/Queer person and be reasonably sure I wasn't going to lose my job, my house and my child.

I want you to know, I am hearing you and seeing you hanging in there to figure this out. If you are looking for women born women only space, this will not be the place for you. If you are looking for a smart, eclectic, infuriating, fascinating online community, then yeah, welcome home.

We (many of us) do forget that it has been traditionally the Lesbians and the Feminists who took on the often thankless and more often low paid jobs in the social services arena to make the world safer and more just for other women and the children. Men have also done this work, but by and large, those cogs have been turned by women. I understand that someone entering into a community such as this could feel cast aside in some regards, but perhaps, if you can think of us as your liberated, unruly, sarcastic progeny, many of us out there doing out own form of activism based on the principles you and others laid as the foundation, it will help you to feel more at ease.

--June